The Future of Little Hope
by AeroJester203
Summary: In one timeline, they saved the world, but before they could get there, they had to live the future wrought by his actions. The future of darkness. Side-story to For the Mission. Please R&R!
1. The Beginning of the End

**So, absolutely nobody requested this, but I figured that some people would like to know what happened in the timeline where Nate's failed, but he's written back to his team. I affectionately refer to it as Timeline 3. As far as I can tell, it's going to be around three chapters, but it's going to be in rotation, so it'll be a while before it's completed.**

 **Also, it may cover side events, but this is still a major spoiler for anybody who hasn't read For the Mission. If you read this before that, you won't understand most of what's happening. But, as usual for those who don't care, the story's right here.**

 **Without further ado, let's take a peek into an alternate future.**

* * *

Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End

Nate fell to all fours, desperate to catch his breath. He tried reaching for a berry, but collapsed to the ground.

'It's… too… much…!'

He looked up despairingly as Dialga was breathing hard himself. If he wasn't so exhausted, this would be the perfect time for Nate to retaliate.

He thought back to his team, counting on him to succeed.

'No…! I… can't give up…!' Nate tried to pull himself up, managing to grab half an Oran Berry. But he fell back to the ground, the healing item falling out of his grasp. Every muscle in his body screamed in pain from the basic action. He couldn't do this alone…

After almost a minute, Dialga roared, back to full strength. Nate could only lament his failure.

"Grovyle… Celebi… Martha… I'm… sorry…"

The Temporal Pokémon stomped over to Nate's broken body, clearing the distance in two strides before lifting his front leg up over the human-turned-Pokémon. Nate could only stare listlessly into Dialga's enraged eyes.

He huffed out a weak chuckle through his nose, 'How ironic that the guardian of Temporal Tower would assure its destruction…'

With a decisive stomp, the last hope for the future perished.

* * *

When Martha waited with her team until sunset, and still had no word back from Nate about success or failure, she immediately knew something was wrong. Nobody on the team wanted to admit it, but it was disconcerting that Nate hadn't written back after he promised he would.

Once the sun fully set, Bidoof came by, letting Martha know to come back to the guild for dinner. She grudgingly dismissed the team and went back with him. But on the way, she got an idea and asked if she could stop by Duskull Bank really quick, claiming that she needed to make a transaction.

After eating, Martha looked at the open Adventure Log from her bed, the moonlight filtering in through her room's window.

'Nate…' she thought. 'You're gone, aren't you? You failed… and that's why you haven't written back, isn't it?'

Letting out a breath, Martha stood up from her bed and took the Treasure Bag from the corner of the room. Leaving behind the Adventure Log, she dug into the wall before digging straight up to surface at the cliff's top.

* * *

Wattson lay on a bed of leaves gathered from the forests near his house, unable to get to sleep. He turned over and looked at the moon, wondering about Nate.

'He said he'd write back, and so far he's always been as good as his word,' Wattson thought as he got up and walked to his window. He knew that the police were still watching his house from a distance, so he didn't go outside.

Wattson sighed as he stared up at the moon, 'What are we supposed to do if you bought the big one, Nate?'

"Wattson."

The Electric Pokémon stiffened, but he held himself back, knowing that any electricity fired would just raise questions. He stared at the moon for a few more moments before pretending to be done and turning to head back to his bed. When he turned around, he saw Martha standing near a hole in the ground.

Wattson held a hand to his chest, and whisper-shouted, "Please, _don't_ scare me like that!"

"Sorry. I need your help," Martha said in a low tone. "Tomorrow morning, we're heading out for Brine Cave, and I need you to gather up the others. I don't know where they live, so I need you to get them there."

Wattson raised an eyebrow, "Why the secrecy? Can't you just wait 'til morning?"

She shook her head, "This has to be done as soon as possible, and I can't wait for the guild to take action. You always met up before Nate and I arrived at the café; the instant everybody's there, start leading them to Brine Cave. I won't be there at the morning address, and you all are the first group they'd question."

"Why Brine Cave?" Wattson asked.

"It's the last chance we have," Martha answered. "Even if we don't have the Relic Fragment anymore, we have to try! I…" The leader looked down, "I have a bad feeling that Nate's dead; I can just tell… But there's still a chance."

She looked up again, "Nate knows about Temporal Tower. He knew about something from the Hidden Land, and the Hidden Land itself, something that Torkoal said was tattered lore."

"Where are you going with this, Martha?"

"We won't be able to do anything here," Martha reasoned. "If the paralyzed future is where Nate is from, that means that at some point he and Grovyle will be born on the Hidden Land. We need to get there, so we can wait to help him."

Wattson's eyebrows shot up, "You mean we're going to… take the long way to the future? All for a slight _chance_ that Nate might be born there again and we can help him?"

"It's not that simple, but it starts with getting to the Hidden Land."

* * *

Wattson received his police escort to Treasure Town the next morning, and he looked around to see that most of his teammates had already met. Only Tisha and Yrja hadn't arrived yet.

"Mornin'."

Everybody turned at the greeting, and Wattson raised his eyebrow when he saw Tisha and Yrja with two other Pokémon. He hadn't seen either of them before, but a female Nidoran stuck close to Tisha, hiding partially behind her at the sight of Terrence, while a Farfetch'd strode beside Yrja.

Tisha coaxed the other Pokémon out from behind her, "Everybody, this is Natalie. I don't think I ever got the chance to let her meet y'all."

"Chad," the Farfetch'd greeted, raising his leek in some sort of salute.

Wattson cleared his throat, "Martha gave me an assignment last night. She wants us to leave immediately."

Surprisingly, nobody asked questions. They just followed Wattson as he led them around the coast to Brine Cave.

* * *

Chatot looked around, not seeing Martha in the morning address. He let out a sigh, thinking that she still remained in her bed. He had hoped for her returning cheer after she came to dinner yesterday.

Once Chatot dismissed the other apprentices, Chimecho made straight for Martha's room, hoping to help her.

Mere moments later, the medic frantically rushed back into the briefing area. Chatot noticed her panic and asked what happened.

"Martha!" Chimecho said in a panic. "Martha's gone!"

* * *

"So we're heading off to try and help Nate," Augustus said once they traveled a distance from Treasure Town.

Wattson glanced over his shoulder in surprise, but Maribel added, "It doesn't take a genius to put two and two together. If Nate was going to write back, he'd have done it by now. Martha told you a plan?"

"We're going to the Hidden Land," Wattson explained. "She wants to be there when Nate is born to lend a hand. That's the short version; I'm pretty sure she's still ironing out the details herself. I have a question, though. Tisha, Yrja, why'd you bring those two along?"

Natalie looked down, and Tisha patted her on the back, "I had a hunch we'd be leavin', and no part of the world is safer for Natalie than by my side."

"Once Yrja told me, I insisted that I come along," Chad explained with a furrowed brow. "No girlfriend of mine is going into hostile territory without extra help."

"It's probably better this way," Psymon said. "We don't know when or if we'll be coming back."

With that thought in mind, the recruits of Team Rapid continued circling the coast and came upon Brine Cave. Martha stood by the Kangaskhan Rock, apparently waiting for them. **(1)** Once she noticed them, she smiled.

"Hi, everybody! Glad you could make it!" Martha greeted enthusiastically. She tilted her head at the sight of Natalie and Chad, "Oh? Who are you two?"

Natalie seemed confused, "You rescued me from-" She was cut off when Chad stepped forward, pointing his leek at her, "Who are you, impostor?"

Martha's eyes widened, but then she sighed with a smile when the team grew suspicious, "No good then…"

Martha disappeared with a puff of smoke and the ground beside the Kangaskhan Rock soon mounded and broke apart to reveal another Martha coming out of the hole.

The recruits blinked at the sight before Tempest stepped forward, "You tried fooling us with a Substitute?!"

"Practice," Martha said in response. "I get the feeling good Substitutes will be invaluable in the coming times. But I didn't know that Chad and Natalie would be coming by, so I didn't include that memory." The team looked at each other and accepted that it could be useful. They also realized how the flaws in Martha's clone were spotted right away.

Ferra grunted, "Huh. Guess those clones aren't as easy as Nate makes them look. They need every memory, but he needs to recall them with detail, and he needs every facet of the personality down."

"Yeah," Terrence added, "you might want to work on that second thing. You seemed a bit too cheery for what's happened recently."

Martha let out a sigh and nodded, "Right. Now, we'll need to split up to travel through the dungeon, but we're all working to get to the end. For supplies, we're going to use this Kangaskhan Rock."

"How'll that do any good?" Wattson asked. "We only have one bag."

Martha shook her head, "Not exactly. There was one other thing Nate taught us." She set down the Treasure Bag and said, "3,000 Poké." The mouth of a bag popped out of the Poké Pocket, and Martha pulled out a sizable bag of money in her teeth.

Once she threw it to the ground, Martha explained, "This was as big as I could make it without the bag being cumbersome for anybody besides Terrence. These things aren't bigger on the inside like the Treasure Bag. Take out a bag, empty the money back in, repeat. We can use another bag for fabric carrying straps. Now, if somebody with actual opposable thumbs could take care of that, I'd really appreciate not having to repeat that process over and over."

Tisha stepped forward and emptied the bag back into the pocket before repeating the process and pulling another bag of the same size out.

Her eyes glanced over the group, counting thirteen Pokémon including herself, "We'll need to form four groups. Wattson, Psymon, Yrja and I will be taking point for each one since we aren't weak to water or ice moves; Augustus, you'll be paired with Wattson to guard him from Gastrodon. Aside from that, it'll be three groups of three and one group of four; try not to bunch up types too much."

At that time, Tisha pulled out the fourth bag and Chad stepped forward after she emptied it. Slashing through with his leek, he rent the bag into three straps.

Terrence and Regina grouped with Psymon, the Water Pokémon accepting one of the bags to hold and moving to the Kangaskhan Rock. Tisha joined up with Wattson and Augustus, along with Natalie, and Wattson deigned to carry the bag after a brief discussion between the two. Yrja and Chad traveled with Ferra, Chad receiving the bag based on his prehensile wings. Tempest and Maribel accompanied Martha, the Treasure Bag back over Martha's shoulder.

All of them took turns filling up their bags with the essential supplies to go through, and the entire team stood at attention when they were done.

Once she noted the groups that had formed, Martha nodded and said, "All right, there's a large antechamber right before the end of the dungeon. We'll meet up there; whoever gets there first, wait for the rest of the group to arrive."

"Right," the rest of the team answered.

* * *

The guild's crew spent the past few hours combing Treasure Town and asking the residents if they'd seen any sign of Martha. Only Spinda had anything to tell, and he hadn't seen Martha. He'd only reported seeing the recruits of Team Rapid, along with two Pokémon he'd never seen before, meeting up in his café and then immediately leaving, apparently with a destination in mind.

Back at Wigglytuff's chamber, Chatot conferred with the Guildmaster about the current situation.

"Guildmaster, why have you assigned the apprentices to search Treasure Town?" he asked. "Surely you know where Martha's headed."

Wigglytuff nodded, "I do. But we need to let her do this. None of my contacts have reported time being restored. Martha's the only one who can still go to the Hidden Land. If she can find Nate again, she can save him, and help him."

Chatot looked worried, "Guildmaster…"

"If Nate's lost, then the planet's paralysis will accelerate," Wigglytuff explained. "Lapras told me about the sea of time. I'm not sure what will happen to it if time is completely stopped. If Martha's getting there, it has to be _now_. We can't stop her."

"…I worry for what will happen," Chatot admitted with a sigh. "Can we not go with her?"

Wigglytuff moved closer to his second-in-command, "We'd just get in the way, or change something that isn't meant to be changed. What matters most is that we stick together. You, me, the apprentices—we have to hold out and believe in our friends!"

Chatot stood upright and nodded determinedly, "Right! Nate said we wouldn't last an hour, so let's prove him wrong!"

* * *

Martha's group was the last one to arrive, oddly enough. But then, hers was the only one without any electric moves. Terrence had Thunder Fang while Psymon handled the Gastrodon with Confusion, Wattson had his Thunder Punch, and Ferra had her newly learned Shock Wave.

Martha powered through all of the Pokémon with just her strength, not good for saving time, but strangely therapeutic for the young Eevee. Despite the circumstances, she couldn't help but feel excitement at the possibility of going to the Hidden Land, and exploring always got her blood pumping.

With all of the groups met up, Martha nodded and led them across the chamber where Kabutops' gang used to hide out, "Beyond this chamber is where we found the pattern that matched my Relic Fragment's." Terrence had to fold his wings to squeeze through the corridor at the end, but the team moved through in single file.

When they reached the inlet, Psymon asked, "So what now?"

"I came here last night," Martha answered. "There was a guide that I met. He said he would be back here by the time I brought you all here…"

"And I am."

Everybody turned towards the mouth of the cove where the seawater came in and Lapras swam in from the open water.

"Greetings, everybody," he said with a bow of his head. "I'm afraid there's no time for introductions; soon the sea of time will be no more."

"Terrence, carry as many as you can," Martha instructed. "Those who can fly or swim, do so until we reach the final jump to the Hidden Land. Everybody else, climb on Lapras' back."

Martha, Tempest, Augustus and Ferra boarded Lapras while Terrence lowered his wing to operate as a ramp for Tisha, Natalie and Wattson to climb on his back. **(2)** Once they were situated, he, Maribel, Regina and Chad took flight while Psymon and Yrja jumped into the water. With all of them ready, Lapras turned around and swam out of the cove with his passengers and entourage.

* * *

The sun went from the eastern horizon to noon, to the west. As they traveled, Lapras seemed to grow more anxious.

Maribel noticed and asked, "Lapras? Are you okay?"

"I have an innate sense for the sea of time's state, and it won't last much longer," Lapras reported. "Temporal Tower has already collapsed and the Hidden Land is paralyzed."

"What?!" everybody around him shouted in surprise.

Wattson spoke up from Terrence's back, "Hey, hold on a minute, the mainland is still fine! Sure, time hasn't been restored, but-"

"Temporal Tower regulates time, and its collapse accelerates the destruction," Lapras spoke up over Wattson's protest, "but the sea of time is the manifestation of time itself. Once Temporal Tower collapsed, the sea of time started drying out. If I don't get you there soon, there won't _be_ a sea to cross anymore."

After a pause of surprise, Martha spoke up, "Lapras… after the sea of time disappears, what happens to you…?"

"…I'm not sure," Lapras replied at length. "All that matters is that I get you all across before it's too late."

Once the sun touched down on the west, the light painting the ocean a teal color against the orange sky, everybody except Lapras stared at the horizon.

Martha sighed through her nose, 'I understand now, Nate. Why you would sacrifice everything and anything for your mission. I probably wouldn't pay this sight any mind if I didn't know it might be the last one…'

Similar thoughts crossed the minds of the rest of the Pokémon until Lapras announced with relief, "There. Up ahead, the gate is still working."

Everybody turned as the sun had almost completely set. Lapras continued, "If you stare at the sea ahead, you'll see the currents are all twisted. That's the border to the gap in time. Everybody, climb on. Only I can make the rest of this trip."

"Are you sure you can handle all of us?" Terrence asked in a concerned tone.

"I have to," Lapras answered. "Those who can't hold on, somebody secure them. I'm going to speed up."

The fliers and swimmers boarded Lapras' back, and Chad transferred his leek from his feet to his mouth so he could hold onto Yrja while digging his feet into one of the studs on Lapras' shell. Other teammates secured each other and as an extra precaution, Terrence stood at the back with his feet gripping the shell and his hands ready to catch anybody in danger of flying off.

Lapras let out a light breath of effort as he was bogged down slightly from the extra weight, but then he trained his eyes forward and started swimming faster to make the jump to the Hidden Land. As he felt himself enter the sea of time, he could tell that it was nearly depleted. It took longer for him to lift out of the water and he felt the strain wear on him.

'I must complete the journey!' he thought resolutely. 'It's the only way for hope to survive!'

Soon, he started swimming faster and the wall of light appeared. Lapras pushed himself as hard as he could and he managed to breach into the gap of time. The instant that the wall parted, he let out a breath and started panting, slowing down as he made his way to the coast.

Soon, he felt a considerable weight lift off his back and saw Terrence flying directly to the coast with Wattson, Tisha and Natalie on his back. The other flying Pokémon also took off, but Yrja and Psymon stayed since they weren't sure they could swim through the sea of time.

Straightening up again and trying to get his breathing under control, Lapras picked up the pace a bit, navigating the rest of the distance. When he pulled up to the edge, he turned to allow Martha and the other Pokémon still on board to join the others.

Martha looked around with her team at the ruined Hidden Land. The fact that time had stopped seemed to be the only thing holding the floating continent together, with the land itself fractured. Floating in the sky, Martha saw a black and grey tower that appeared to have been frozen mid-collapse. The ruined top half looked like it should've fallen ages ago and the derelict bottom would've caved under the pressure. Completing the image, the sky was black and the land was colored in different shades of gray.

"This is all I can do for you," Lapras said with a light pant. "Whatever your plan, ensure that the planet's paralysis never happens."

Martha turned around and nodded before taking in Lapras' exhausted state, "Lapras… will you be okay?"

"Yes," Lapras replied with a smile. "There should be just enough left of the sea of time for me to cross back to the outer world. It'll be easier by myself."

Martha looked Lapras in the eye before nodding. She turned back to the others and motioned for them to go to the Hidden Land, "Let's go. We need to find a place to dig a hideout before Dialga knows we're here."

They nodded and broke up into different groups, formed based on general type coverage rather than against specific types. Some pairs were still inevitable, like Tisha with her adoptive sister and Yrja with her boyfriend. Martha's group wound up being comprised of Maribel, Tempest and Ferra.

As they moved to travel through the first dungeon to the bulk of the Hidden Land, Maribel fell into step next to Martha, saying, "Martha? Lapras, he's…"

"I know."

How could she _not_ see it? Martha knew that smile all too well from whenever Nate had told her about their future.

"He's lying…"

* * *

As Team Rapid moved out, another set of eyes watched them from nearby.

"Why're we doing this again? We don't even _like_ the guy."

"'Cause it was either this or rot on the continent."

"Can it, both of you. We need to stick close without alerting them so we can meet up with the Eevee alone."

* * *

Team Rapid met up again in the central part of the Hidden Land and Martha dug a tunnel underground before widening it into a chamber. The rest of the team soon went in and helped, though none were as fast without the move Dig. As they worked, though, Tempest revealed that he had learned Dig from all of the tough battles they'd gone through to get to this point.

Once they had finished, Martha and Tempest started working to add living quarters to the hideout. Soon, they had rooms carved out in the earth for all of them to sleep in. Martha said that they could pair up or pick a room to have to themselves. She and Tempest could always dig another room out.

With all of that settled Terrence looked up at the entrance and molded a cover from the earth inside the base with Ancient Power.

"So what now?" Psymon asked.

Martha turned to address the team, "For now, we train and grow stronger. Nate and Grovyle aren't due to be born here for who-knows-how-long, and then there's another 400 years to wait until the proper time to intervene."

"How will we know when to act?" Regina asked.

Martha gave a small smile and a wink and said, "You let me worry about that. We should focus on the essentials for the long wait. We can take turns foraging for food in the mystery dungeons around here, and Tempest and I can start work digging an arena further underground. We wouldn't want to draw attention with noise from underground."

"I'll go foraging first," Wattson volunteered. "I'm the fastest and I have experience getting in and out of dungeons without detection from my outlaw days."

Tisha raised an eyebrow at him, "Seriously?"

"How do you think a gang of henchman can stay off the radar for so long? It's the first slip-up that sinks the boss, and it wasn't me that made it," he answered as he re-adjusted his bag. Terrence made steps for him out of levitating stones and then moved aside the cover until he was out.

* * *

Maribel went into her own room, running a mental count in her head. She couldn't be sure of the exact time, since mystery dungeons warped it, but she could keep track of time that went by relative to her. The Flying-type already had a good idea of the plan from deduction.

She had been counting ever since they arrived at the Hidden Land, and it had reached the amount of seconds significant: 3,600 seconds.

With that milestone reached, she flew up to one part near the top of her earthen chamber and wrote a prompt in footprint runes with her claws before underlining it and making a mark.

'Hour 1…' Maribel thought to herself. 'Somebody should keep track after all. 9…10…11…'

If she lost count… well, nobody could deny her claim of how much time had passed since time didn't run.

* * *

While everybody else slept, Martha left a Substitute in her bed to feign sleep. She made sure to add in every relevant memory she could draw upon to boost its knowledge, and included memories of the recent events and the Nate's message.

'Really, it would just be better if I got back before anybody woke up,' Martha thought to herself.

She dug her way to the surface and looked around before another figure walked out from behind a nearby rock.

"You're late."

Martha wore a rueful smile, "You can't be sure."

The other figure let out a grunt, which Martha couldn't be sure was amusement or annoyance, and said, "So what's the big idea sending us here? What's in it for you?"

"You owe a favor, and I want to make sure you pay it," Martha answered plainly. "Either way, you're stuck here, so you might as well help to ensure you can just go back to doing your own thing."

He glared, but smiled, "You drive a hard bargain, using your own partner's memory to get something out of me. And I thought _he_ was cold."

"This partnership isn't exactly pleasant to _me_ , either," Martha replied with a slight glare of her own, "but your skills are better than mine in what I need you to do."

He let out a smug chuckle before saying, "Alright, I'll bite. What do you want out of us?"

"At some point in this future, a Duskull should be born," Martha instructed. "Find him before Primal Dialga does."

"The great Dusknoir, as a child? Molding him to your own purposes?" The figure laughed as he shook his head before saying, "You impress even _me_ with these new levels of low."

"Stop that!" Martha ordered. "This is to save Nate and the world. I am _nothing_ like you."

"If you say so," he replied tauntingly. "All right, I'll pass it on."

"What?"

The smug tone grated on Martha's nerves more than anything else as the figure nodded, "Yeah, you've been talking to a Substitute."

"How?!" Martha demanded. "You only learned it-"

"Because unlike self-righteous chumps like you, Nate and I are honest with ourselves about who we are, what we want, and _what we'll do to get it_ ," the clone jeered. "The same can't be said for you, Martha, if you won't acknowledge that you're only in this for yourself. You said 'save _Nate_.' If you wanted to save _him_ , you'd have to leave the world like _this_!"

The clone kept laughing at Martha until she used a Quick Attack and snuffed it out. She could tell that annoying laugh rang out somewhere else, but they had their orders.

* * *

 **Well. That happened. I'm not really sure what else to comment.**

 **Notes:**

 **1\. Seriously, look up a video of the cutscene outside Brine Cave. There's a Kangaskhan Rock that's never used in the game. Aside from that scene, you never see the outside of Brine Cave again, and never have the chance to use it. I dunno, maybe it's in case you get knocked out, so you can resupply.**

 **2\. Aerodactyl's weight (on average): 130.1 lbs. Combined weight of Elekid, female Nidoran and Cubone (on average): 81.5 lbs. Meanwhile, Aerodactyl stand at 5' 11" while Cubone and Nidoran female are 1' 04" and Elekid stands at 2' 00". Meaning it's totally plausible.**

 **See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


	2. In the Future of Darkness

Chapter 2: In the Future of Darkness

Many years came and went, only Maribel's tally able to keep at least an approximation of how much time passed. After a few years, Martha saw little point in keeping her extra help secret, knowing full well that Nate keeping secrets and trying to hide things led to where they stood now.

None of them were exactly thrilled at the prospect, Augustus especially. But they accepted it as necessary and tried to ignore their new guests as much as possible. Everybody except Wattson, that is. He figured that if they wanted to work together, they should have a mediator, and Martha certainly wouldn't do it. Wattson stood the best middle ground between the two groups, so he relayed information between Martha and their leader.

Team Rapid's only occupations consisted of training, foraging and scouting. Maribel in particular camouflaged well in the landscape with her monochromatic plumage, so she scouted most often.

Chad and Tisha often sparred against one another, since both were well-versed in weapon combat, despite the aesthetical differences in how they wielded them. After watching everybody try so hard, Natalie got sick of doing nothing and insisted to her adoptive sister that she learn to fight as well. Tisha adamantly refused at first, but after a few days, she agreed to teach her—if only so that her ward didn't try something reckless like going alone to learn by doing.

Above all else, Martha kept trying to perfect her Substitutes after seeing her "ally" get it down pat within a day. She began digging deep into herself, trying to be as brutally honest as possible in her own mind, since that seemed to be something Nate did. Perhaps he acted that way because he looked into himself with the same lens.

Improvement moved slowly, since Martha found she didn't like all that she found.

* * *

"Martha."

The leader of Team Rapid stopped her attack, dissipating her Trump Card attack while Maribel landed. She turned and addressed Wattson with a "Yes?"

"They're here," Wattson reported. "They found him."

"They brought him here to our hideout?" Martha asked with a furrowed brow. That could potentially expose them!

Wattson chuckled lightly, "No. They're above ground a few miles to the south. He figured you'd say that. He said that it's their hideout too, and they're not _stupid_."

Martha rolled her eyes and nodded before she burrowed underground and went towards the surface through the walls, making a stop to pick something up. Maribel moved to spar with Natalie and the Poison-type's former partner, Augustus, moved to start fighting with the former outlaw.

* * *

"You weren't rough with him, were you?" the Eevee asked.

"Hey, he tried to escape," a clone of Martha's ally countered. "A quick Mean Look fixed that and we had to teach him to not try it again."

Martha groaned, "He's not going to trust _me_ if _you_ just beat him up!"

"Ah, quit your whining," he retorted. "He's just a kid. He'll hate us, but trust you. We know you always carry Oran Berries in that bag. Just be as sappy as you usually are, and he'll stick to you."

When Martha arrived at the meeting point, a shivering Duskull floated between the trio. His glowing eye moved between the sockets of his skull face nervously and he sported a few cuts in his ghostly form. Once they saw her, they nodded and the clone dispersed before they turned to leave. But not without one of the Pokémon whispering a warning.

"Better not try anything. I'll be listening."

Martha's tentative allies left and Duskull regarded her carefully. She sighed and took out an Oran Berry.

"Sorry that they hurt you. It wasn't on my orders."

She rolled the Oran Berry over to the Requiem Pokémon, who looked between the berry and her before floating down and grabbing it. Once he had it, he pressed the berry directly into his body before the cuts in his form healed.

"Why… did you want them to find me?"

Martha had to fight down a stab of guilt in light of Duskull's small voice in contrast to Dusknoir's charismatic tones. The words of the allies' leader echoed in her mind, but she managed to keep it all under wraps and smiled gently.

"You're more special than you know, Duskull," Martha answered.

The ghost Pokémon shied away, "How did you know my name…?!"

Martha kept up her patient smile, "Everybody I meet usually goes by their species name unless they join an exploration team."

"What's an exploration team…?"

"That would take too much time to explain in words," Martha replied with a headshake. "So, I'm going to give you a gift to speed things up."

The Eevee pulled out a TM for Psychic from her bag, "I want you to use this and look into my memories. The ones that you need to see will be on the forefront of my mind."

Duskull took the disk and tilted his head, "How… am I supposed to 'use' something like this…?"

"I can show you if you like," Martha offered. When Duskull hesitated, she smiled, "I'm not going to hurt you. You're going to be fine."

The Ghost-type looked at her face before he handed the TM back. Martha took it in her mouth and held it against his forehead. The young Pokémon shuddered slightly as he felt the power course through him.

"I…" Duskull looked at his hands, "I feel it… I can sense you, those mean Pokémon a bit further away… every Pokémon."

Martha nodded, "Focus on me—my mind. You'll see what you need to there."

"Um… I think it'd help if I put my hands on your head…" Duskull hesitantly voiced.

"Go ahead," Martha urged with a patient smile, "I trust you."

The Requiem Pokémon rested his cloth-like hands on Martha's temples and his single red eye glowed blue before he looked inside the Eevee's mind.

What he saw nearly made him lurch away, and then just as nearly pass out from sensory overload.

While Martha had never watched a sunrise, the sunset view at Treasure Town's beach still held a special place in her heart and memories, so Duskull saw that first. Through Martha's memories, he saw the running water in Waterfall Cave, felt the intense heat and raging winds of the Northern Desert (even though the ability of an apparent teammate blocked the sand), and heard the sounds of life in Treasure Town that the desolate Hidden Land lacked.

Duskull couldn't take anymore, so he pulled his hands away, dissolving the image. Martha opened her eyes again and regarded him with a neutral expression.

"What was _that_?" Duskull asked incredulously.

Martha smiled at his innocent wonder and answered, "That is a world before the planet's paralysis. It's what I fight for, and why I've called you. I want you to help me bring the world back to that."

Duskull had looked about to respond, so Martha cut him off, "But… I'm going to be perfectly honest with you before you make your decision. When we succeed in preventing the destruction of time, history will be changed. This timeline will disappear to be replaced with the new one. You, as well as everyone born in this time and everything that I've become, will vanish along with it."

The Requiem Pokémon looked shocked, even with his unmoving skull face. Martha continued, her smile fading to a serious look, "There's someone very dear to me who I'm looking for in this time. Even though I might live on in another future, he won't. He tried to keep that a secret and paid for it with his life and his mission. Whether he was right or wrong to do that is up for debate, but I'm not going to hide things with lives on the line. If you want to help, you have a right to know the same as I do."

Duskull shivered, "But what would be the point of changing the world if you couldn't live in it?"

"What would be the point of living in a world that never changed?" Martha asked in response. "You may or may not have figured it out, but I'm from before the planet became paralyzed and I don't look a day over fifteen. There's no aging when time is broken. Anybody who lives here is stuck here, either hiding for eternity, joining in maintaining this world or wandering aimlessly while waiting to be killed. And don't get me started on those that can't keep their mind in this dark time."

The child before Martha looked down meekly, "Those sound like terrible choices…"

"Sometimes, life only gives terrible choices," Martha answered. "Only a few try to find a new one."

Duskull looked down in contemplation. He looked up and Martha felt she knew his answer.

"What do you need me to do, exactly?"

* * *

Martha explained what Duskull's part in this needed to be, in order to ensure none of the resistance got erased before they could intervene. She allowed the ghost to scan her memories again to learn who Nate and Grovyle would be, and what his role was for as far as she had planned.

He shivered at the prospect of having to work for Primal Dialga down the line, but started training with the rest of them to reach his next stage of evolution. He doubted that the former Lord of Time would accept a child into his ranks.

Each of them tried to push their bodies to new limits, and succeeded—perhaps a little too well. Regina started feeling the effects first, since she had great power in a comparatively weak body. It turned out that growing too much stronger than the usual threshold of evolution caused pain from the pre-evolved state literally being unable to continue bearing the force exerted. After only a few decades, everybody started feeling the effects, save for Terrence and Chad, the latter beside himself with concern for his girlfriend.

With the pain as an additional incentive, everybody strove to evolve at least once to stave off the effects, though Psymon did so reluctantly. Tempest in particular pushed himself harder than ever through the pain, refusing to be kept from his evolution because he couldn't tough it out. Martha tested out a theory that she had, based on the White Gummis that they occasionally found, and left the hideout for a time.

The first to push himself to evolution wound up being Augustus. His exoskeleton cracked with each attack he threw at the time, but he managed to start sparking white and eventually flashed before changing. The fungus on his back grew from two mushrooms into a giant one that covered its entirety. His body didn't grow much in size, but his front claws grew longer and thicker. The most notable change was his eyes. Even though the new blank appearance to them unnerved others on the team, he assured that he still had the same personality.

With the shock worn off, the rest asked how he did it. He simply answered, "If I didn't, I'd die. So I fought to keep my life while growing stronger."

Others started evolving after that. Regina, Wattson, Tempest, Maribel and Ferra first, cited as cases of sheer determination to live. Soon after that, Tisha, Natalie and Yrja followed suit. Each of them explained that they refused to die, since their loved ones would be sad. Psymon and Duskull were hard cases.

The Duck Pokémon didn't want to evolve for personal reasons, so it formed a mental barrier of sorts that hindered him even through the excruciating pain. After another month, though, his survival instinct took over and he evolved into a Golduck with a heavy heart.

Duskull himself wasn't so limited by physical pain; he had no physical body, after all. His shadow techniques had grown as he did. The mental strain wore on him, though. As a result of his life not being imminently in danger, he couldn't push the same survival instinct that Psymon had. Seeing little hope for his future sanity if he continued recklessly, the Requiem Pokémon came to a decision and informed everybody before leaving the hideout, promising to contact them again if his plan worked.

A few days after he left, Martha came back from her outing as an Umbreon, burrowing straight into the hideout. She looked around, glad to see the team evolved, even their allies had managed to pull it off. When she noticed Duskull missing, the team told her what he intended to do.

* * *

Finding the Sableye wasn't hard at all. All he had to do was float nowhere in particular for a few hours (days, who knows?), and a group of the Pokémon soon found him.

"Go away," Duskull warned in what he hoped sounded callous.

The Darkness Pokémon simply laughed in response and Duskull summoned a ring of blue fireballs around him, "I said _leave_!"

The Pokémon dodged around his shakily thrown fireballs. He really couldn't direct them properly with his current state of mind. The Sableye easily dodged the attacks and began attacking him with Shadow Claw.

Duskull had grown strong from his intensive training, but each darkness-infused swipe tore at his very being. His opponents relentlessly slashed at him and for the first time, the young Pokémon felt that primal fear for his survival. Fixating on that, he tapped into his power and dragged it kicking and screaming to the surface.

The Sableye knew that something was going wrong when their victim sparked with a white glow, but they reeled back in horror when the Pokémon only moderately larger than them flashed and swelled to be over thrice their height. Before they could disappear into the shadows, a flash of red light signifying Foresight rendered all of them tangible and unable to shadow travel.

The glow faded and Duskull completed his evolution, appearing cyclopean with a red eye and bandages around his entire body. Two short legs stood on the ground now with no visible feet and he had no arms, only hands made out of lighter gray material than his bandages. Wispy tendrils colored the same as his hands appeared from his head and the newly evolved Dusclops glared down at the Sableye, even without being able to move his new eye.

"Well, seems we're in a unique situation now…" Dusclops mused in a caustic tone. "Though, perhaps I can overlook this slight on my person, _if_ you take me to your leader."

The Sableye immediately got on their hands and knees, bowing low to the Beckon Pokémon, "R-right away, Master Dusclops!"

* * *

As Dusclops shuffled along the desolate land with his bandaged legs on his first patrol, he reached down with his psychic sense to a cluster of life forms.

 _'_ _I've evolved and infiltrated as Primal Dialga's apprentice. I'll begin working towards ascension to his right-hand agent. I managed to mask my psychic sense from him, so he won't know that I can find you. I'll report back with any information that I can find.'_

* * *

More time passed as Team Rapid continued training, their new forms able to rein in the power. Martha wasn't sure how much tampering with Dusknoir's development sped up or delayed his joining with Primal Dialga, but she could only hope that the effect would be negligible on Nate and Grovyle's past.

It also occurred to her that Celebi operated as a variable as well and should be brought into the loop. Maribel took off to go find her and let her know of their intentions. Luckily, even evolved, her plumage still contained more black and gray than white. The Staravia flew toward where they figured Celebi would be. She was obviously a Grass-type of considerable power, so her logical habitat would be Dusk Forest—literally the _one_ place on the Hidden Land that still possessed vegetation besides lichens.

Naturally, once inside the forest, she couldn't avoid getting sighted by the native Pokémon anymore. But her new wingspan allowed for more devastating Whirlwinds to get them out of her way whenever they got too close. If she got cornered, she could always barge her way through with Brave Bird.

Getting to the deeper portion of Dusk Forest was no problem. Once Maribel reached a clearing, she looked around, still unable to catch sight of the Time Travel Pokémon.

"Hmm…"

"Hello~"

Maribel stood defensively when she heard the voice and it giggled in response, "Teehee~ I've heard the phrase 'a little bird told me', and seeing you here tells me a lot!"

A golden sphere of light appeared in front of the Flying-type before it disappeared and the same pink Pokémon she'd heard about from the others fluttered in its place.

"Hello! I'm Celebi!" she greeted.

Maribel nodded her head, "Nice to officially meet you."

"Hmm…" Celebi puzzled. "I know _I've_ never seen you before, but _you_ seem to know _me_ … Are you a time traveler from the future? Has the planet's paralysis been averted in the future? Does the sun shine? Does-"

Maribel decided to cut her off before she talked her ear off. "No, I'm not a time traveler. Well, not in the sense that you're thinking. Somebody did travel back in time, but not me. I guess you could say that history has already begun to change from the intervention."

Celebi tilted her head, "Oh? You know another me, perhaps? So somebody _does_ try to stop it! Wonderful!"

"Er… yes," Maribel answered, slightly unnerved by the Time Travel Pokémon's chipper mood after hearing about how serious she was from the others. "Sometime soon…ish, you'll be meeting two who want to travel back in time, a human and a Pokémon. Unfortunately, I don't know the details of how long until they'll be born, but they'll come to you soon enough."

"Alright! You don't have to _ask_ me to help them silly! Anything to get rid of this awful future!" Celebi replied with a wave of her hand.

The second-in-command of Team Rapid furrowed her brow slightly, something else occurring to her. Something might have happened to change the Pokémon before her to the one she heard about. Nate had never mentioned that Celebi went with him to climb Temporal Tower, and there was Grovyle's disappearance from the past as well.

"Listen… a lot of this is secondhand, and I won't claim to know everything about what shape the past is in from all of the time travel, but…" When Celebi looked at her curiously, Maribel continued, "No matter how bad things might seem in the past, know that we're here now and it'll change."

The pink Pokémon's smile fell into a confused expression, but then she shrugged, "Okay. I don't see what that piece could serve, but I'll keep that in mind. I'll also try not to expose your existence to these two that you're talking about. Wouldn't want you disappearing early!"

With that said, Celebi turned to leave, but stopped and casually mentioned over her shoulder, "Oh. Also, your count's off. It's been 131 years since the planet's paralysis. I know my stuff about time."

Maribel was left baffled about the wide margin of error she made before the time traveler vanished in a golden sphere of light. Had it really been that long already?

* * *

Unknown to Team Rapid at the time, hope had already begun to appear in the future of darkness in the form of a short figure that stuck to the shadows out of fear at first, and then to observe. They spent most of their childhood running for their life from other Pokémon, scavenging food when they could. Once they stopped being afraid and learned to hide themself, they started listening to other Pokémon talk when they thought they were alone.

Their seven years of existence had forced them to learn fast or die. They had learned the essentials of speaking, but rarely did so, as speaking would give away their position. They cloaked themself in gray leaves from Dusk Forest fastened with gray vines and moved barefoot through the desolate land to make as little noise as possible. In hindsight, that was just a bonus. By the time they understood what shoes were, their feet were so callused that making them would be moot.

Moving silently and keeping low in the landscape, they aimed to get back to their hideout (one of them, anyway) when they heard a cry of distress. Tightening the gray mask of leaves around their face and forehead, preparing for a trick from other Pokémon, they moved quietly to investigate, on the off chance that someone really did need help.

When they looked from their position, they immediately decided what to do and began concentrating their mind to narrow the amount of energy used for their technique.

* * *

In the middle of a group of Sableye, a small hunched over Pokémon tried to endure their frenzied claws. Lashing out with Pound did nothing but amuse them, so he tried to stay as still as possible and hoped that they got bored.

The Darkness Pokémon laughed until one of them cried out in pain. While he rubbed the back of his head, the rest of the group turned and saw a Gravelrock on the ground behind him. After they sighted it, another Sableye screamed when an Iron Thorn pierced his shoulder.

They looked around, trying to find the attacker, only for projectile weapons to start raining down on everybody but the surrounded Pokémon. The Sableye tried to defend, but couldn't identify where the attackers were, so they fled by dissolving into shadows. With the Ghost-types gone, they revealed their victim to be a Treecko.

Still shivering, the Wood Gecko Pokémon waited. After a few moments crawled by without any sign of the Sableye coming back, he uncovered his eyes to look around. When he saw something move in the foliage ahead, he shifted back in fear.

That fear dissolved into curiosity regarding the form before him. Standing at around twice his height, the figure didn't look like any Pokémon familiar to Treecko. They were clad head-to-toe in a suit of gray leaves, save for a patch of black fur over the top and back of their head and white skin peeking between the cracks. They carried a bag made of longer leaves clumsily woven together. A fellow Grass-type, maybe? Grass/Normal? Grass/Dark?

The young Pokémon suddenly leaned towards the latter when several blank-eyed doppelgangers of the strange one came in from the surrounding area. Each of them carried a supply of Gravelrocks and Iron Thorns in their hands. So it _was_ this one who saved him!

The one from the foliage – the leader? – held out their bag and the others mechanically returned the weapons to the bag and disappeared in puffs of smoke. The remaining Pokémon took inventory before tightening the vine around the top of the bag and suddenly turning their attention to Treecko. The Grass-type's eyes widened, and he tried to crawl away. Maybe this one had just driven off the Sableye to get him to themself!

Regardless, with his injuries, the Wood Gecko Pokémon didn't get very far before the strange Pokémon strode over and picked him up in their arms. He stayed paralyzed with fear while looking into the Pokémon's gray eyes before a voice – rough from apparent disuse, but still sounding child-like – spoke.

"Don't… worry… I will… protect…"

After that reassurance, Treecko watched questioningly as the odd one looked up and formed two more copies out of thin air. With a gesture of his head, the clones broke off in two different directions while the original ran off with Treecko, being careful not to jostle the injured Pokémon.

With all of the strange developments and his own injuries, the young Pokémon did the instinctual thing and passed out.

* * *

The next hours of Treecko's life easily qualified to be the strangest he'd experienced yet, despite his young age.

He'd woken up to find himself in an unevenly dug out shelter with leaves camouflaging the entrance with the odd Pokémon resting against the wall nearby. Looking down revealed that he had leaves bound to his body with pink paste that stung slightly when he moved. There was also the fact that he rested on a bed of leaves that barely offered more comfort than the ground.

The instant he stirred, however, the strange one's eyes shot open and they jumped to their feet, posture tense and eyes searching the area. When they saw no threat and Treecko awake, they visibly relaxed, but still treaded cautiously, as if always listening for an attack.

"Awake… Good…" they said with a nod. They opened the bag and took out a round, blue berry before walking hesitantly over to Treecko.

They held out the berry to him and said, "Eat… Heal…"

Treecko looked confusedly at the berry and then the leaf-clad Pokémon before they tilted their head while what little could be seen of their face shifted to a puzzled expression.

"Can't talk…? Hmm…"

They seemed to have an idea and took off a portion of their leafy coverings around their left arm before reaching into their bag again. Treecko shied away when they took out an Iron Thorn, but the odd Pokémon just took it and cut into their exposed flesh, dripping blood on the floor while they winced in pain.

Dropping the Iron Thorn, they peeled away the covering on their lower face, revealing a mouth as they held up the blue berry and said, "Oran… Berry…" They broke off a piece and said, "Eat…" Popping it into their mouth, they relaxed and gestured to the cut which started to close up, but only enough to stop the bleeding without more of the berry, "Heal…"

After that, they offered the berry again and Treecko hesitantly took it before biting into the blue fruit. When he felt new energy fill him, the Grass-type quickly scarfed down the rest of it while his wounds healed. The odd Pokémon smiled slightly when they saw Treecko stand up again.

They held out their hand towards the leaves on his body, so he hesitantly allowed them to take off the wrappings. When he noticed some of the pink paste leftover on his chest, he wiped a bit off with his finger and sniffed the strongly sweet smell. He looked up at the strange one curiously.

"Pecha Berry… paste, to not get… infected… before waking up…" they answered. He put a hand to his chest, "Name… Nate… Want to… help you…"

Treecko didn't know what those words meant, but he could feel no malevolent intent from this Pokémon. Mimicking the other's smile from earlier, Treecko tried to show that he meant no harm and wanted to stay.

They nodded and he nodded back. Treecko started trying to speak too, but he didn't know nearly as many words as this Nate did, so Nate started trying to teach them his own limited vocabulary. Either showing or doing what the word meant helped the young Pokémon understand faster.

When Treecko first called Nate a Pokémon, they shook their head and put a hand to their chest, "No… Human… Nate the Human."

Admittedly, Nate didn't know exactly what the name meant; they just repeated the same phrase that the Sableye did whenever they managed to spot them or their clones.

 _"Eliminate the human! Eliminate!"_

The human still didn't know what it meant to "elimi" someone, but they kept calling them "Nate the Human" or "Nate" for short. So they went with it.

* * *

 **Change is set to be put in motion.**

 **See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


	3. Birth of a Thief

**Before we get to the chapter, I'm going to explain something that might not be entirely clear to some readers: the disparity between Nate's age and appearance.**

 **He's mentioned before that there's no aging with the planet paralyzed and that he went through life in the future stuck with a toddler's body. That explains the above question handily enough, but others might wonder how he can appear to be a toddler instead of a newborn.**

 **The way it works in this story (you may feel free to accept or reject it) is that Nate appeared in a world of Pokémon after generations passed by, and new Pokémon inhabited the Hidden Land. Among those are the Abra line and Drowzee line, which are both "Human-Like" Pokémon, and Ditto. So yes, I'm making it so that a human appeared after generations of adaptation to the environment and that implies that he hatched from a Pokémon egg.**

 **When Pokémon hatch from eggs, they do so with their motor skills fully developed, even if their mental state is that of an infant, they learn fast. As such, Nate hatched able to walk and move on an instinctual level, but didn't know anything. He soon figured out that practically every Pokémon would either attack him from fear or anger or deliberately wanted him dead, so his survival instinct led him to do things like camouflage himself and use Substitute to distract pursuers.**

 **So, he hatched looking like a four-year-old, but those who did the math know that he's seven. Unlike Pokémon, humans grow through aging rather than evolution, so he's locked in that body for his entire life, taking advantage of subterfuge over strength to survive.**

 **(Also, side note, I refer to Nate and have him use only gender neutral terms for now because he doesn't know what gender is at this point and the Pokémon around him – at least those who don't know about him from another time – don't know enough about humans to tell the difference.)**

 **I hope that explains everything about the previous chapter, now let's move on with the story.**

* * *

Chapter 3: Birth of a Thief

With Dusclops as Primal Dialga's apprentice, he quickly rose through the ranks to become his right-hand agent by simple virtue of being stronger than the Sableye.

Over the years, as he heard varying reports of a human that Primal Dialga evidently saw as a threat – unknown identity as of yet – he took it upon himself to search for them. He patrolled while sending out the Sableye and would periodically report back to Team Rapid with his psychic powers whenever he got the route that went over their hideout.

When a guard had reported seeing the human inside the stockade, Dusclops traveled there to see a bipedal figure covered in leaves standing in their library. They leafed through the book, hardly paying the words any mind.

"Who are you?!" he demanded, even though he had a good idea. "You trespass in Primal Dialga's domain!"

"Wheh-heh! Master Dusclops!" Sableye said, glad to have backup now. "That's the human that's eluded us for so long!"

They turned to him and he recoiled slightly at the unnervingly blank stare. Regardless, he shot his hand out and grabbed the human, causing them to drop the book. When he pulled them closer, they simply looked him up and down from behind their mask, not scared in the slightest.

"You… new…" the human said.

Dusclops sneered, "Show respect to your betters, human. I am Dusclops, Primal Dialga's right hand Pokémon. You've been a thorn in our master's side for too long, and now you will be executed under suspicion of criminal activity."

His captive simply stared at him blankly as several words appeared to go over his head. Dusclops had an impression that this one (he was positive that it was Nate, unless _another_ human lived on the Hidden Land) had about as much mental capacity as an empty jar—the essentials to living and operating, but no personality. Quite different from the prowess Martha spoke of in her stories and memories of Nate, the prowess she sought to achieve herself.

He knew this probably wasn't the real Nate, but he had to play along for the Sableye guard. Shaking the clone, he said, "Are you listening? You will die for-"

"What's… die…?" they asked.

Seeing an opportunity to assert his control over the Sableye yet again, Dusclops pretended to lose his patience and said, "'What's die…' Allow me to demonstrate."

With that said, he shot his hand outward again, sending the substitute into the wall. Once he made contact, the body disappeared in a puff of smoke and the room shook as Dusclops' hand slammed into it.

Sableye shook a bit, but Dusclops just stared at the lack of a body and appeared in deep thought.

"Well…" he began. "It seems you Sableye aren't as incompetent as I thought. The human knows Substitute."

* * *

Back at their hideout, Nate sat in pseudo-meditation, having already gathered enough food for them and their new friend. Treecko imitated the position, and Nate opened an eye to see the younger Pokémon grasping it better than them. Quite appropriate, really, considering Nate's usual habits.

Nate usually stayed out at all times, being an extremely light sleeper and not requiring much rest. They always did spying to learn something or gathered supplies. The human felt restless and inefficient if they weren't doing something to aid their survival. Nate only made the hideouts for if they got injured or needed a safe place to snatch some limited rest.

However, with their new guest, they had to change some of their methods. The human didn't feel comfortable leaving a baby Pokémon alone for long periods of time. What if Treecko wandered off, or somebody discovered their hideout and attacked them? And bringing them along was simply out of the question for Nate.

So, they'd settled for sending clones out in their stead, periodically creating new ones. They still hadn't figured out a way to make them smarter, but they'd figured out how to put commands into their construction. It made those orders be their sole purpose for existing instead of the standard "guard the original" mindset.

Suddenly, they got a rush of new information from one of their substitutes. Taking a breath, Nate stood up, causing Treecko to open their eyes and look around, having picked up Nate's habit for threat checking at the slightest sign of foreign noise. The same as they'd already learned all of their friend's limited vocabulary.

The human grabbed an Iron Thorn from their bag near the wall and moved to the ground, attempting to carve in the symbols while the image remained fresh in their mind. One of their clones had finally gotten lucky and infiltrated the stockade long enough to see one of what the Sableye had referred to as "books".

Doing their best to recall the briefly viewed pages, they drew one symbol in the dirt for each different kind the clone had seen. Treecko moved closer and eyed their task curiously.

Nate paused a moment as they recalled the large Pokémon that called themself Dusclops. Those hands could grab them as long as they were in Dusclops' sight… The human made a mental note to be careful of that one while continuing their task.

'Letters…' they thought to themselves. 'Letters… make words… Words… are voice… Voice… on books… Learn letters… then… I will… understand…'

* * *

A few years passed as Nate continued living with Treecko. The Grass-type had come to look up to them as both a parental figure and a friend. They would often imitate what Nate would do and ask about different fighting techniques, such as throwing the ammo items and moving silently. In exchange, Treecko helped Nate learn climbing. The human learned over time to find those minuscule places for their fingers and toes to grip.

They'd also done some sparring since Treecko began to feel restless as they got older. The Wood Gecko Pokémon learned very fast that humans were a lot more delicate than Pokémon after first using the move Absorb. They apologized repeatedly as Nate remained bedridden for a few hours. The human assured that they would recover and offered Treecko to rest with them. They did so and Nate calmed them by softly humming a tune that the Pokémon liked.

At that moment, Nate knew that they had to do something about this world. The human had never been happy with their lot in life, but they survived. Nate knew that Pokémon like Treecko shouldn't live in this dangerous place.

From then on, Nate accepted that if Treecko really wanted to battle, then they couldn't hold back on their training. If the Pokémon didn't learn how to battle properly, then one of them could wind up dead. They equipped their bag and used battle items to even the score, in addition to using Substitute liberally to avoid attacks or trick the young Pokémon. They warned the Grass-type that if either of them held back, they would wind up getting hurt badly during the lessons. It seemed to alternate between who had to recover after the last spar. Treecko held the edge in physical ability and speed, especially after learning Quick Attack, but Nate had the ability to anticipate the Pokémon's position by the minutest of sounds and respond accordingly through items thrown with deadly accuracy.

One time, Treecko would recover from a Stun Seed/Blast Seed combo, or from multiple bruises and pierce wounds from Nate's items. Another time, Nate nursed some cracked ribs from running out of Substitutes and taking a Quick Attack before they could reach an Oran Berry. It varied with each sparring session.

Unfortunately, their lessons on the letters that Nate's clone had recovered couldn't move forward.

Nate tried to make sense of the different letters that they'd written. But without hearing someone saying the words that they wrote, the meaning eluded the human.

They held no illusions that they'd be able to get the Sableye or Dusclops to read any words they wrote. The ghosts would likely investigate who wrote it rather than the meaning of the message.

Nate needed a new mark to get results. Forming two Substitutes, they wove the orders into their construction and assigned them their messages to write. With that done, they got back to sparring, knowing that the clones would report when they did. If they got destroyed, they could always send out two more, and the copies didn't need to eat or sleep.

* * *

In the deeper portion of Dusk Forest, the Black Swamp to be precise, only the whisper of a wind indicated a presence before the sound of scraping filled the clearing. Once it vanished, the area remained silent for a time until curiosity got the better of the swamp's resident.

In a flash of yellow light, the Time Travel Pokémon appeared. She looked around and found the source of the earlier noise.

"Hm?" Celebi hummed as she noticed some writing on a tree bordering the clearing in footprint runes. The pink Pokémon flew to get a closer look.

"'Gdmevuox'?" she wondered, reading it aloud. "It's just gibberish."

When Celebi heard scraping sounds behind her, she turned to see a strange Pokémon wrapped in gray leaves carving more symbols into another tree across from her with an Iron Thorn. Once they finished, they walked off to the forest beyond.

Curious, she fluttered over and looked at the "word" that they had carved in.

"'Azfpwbnt'," the Time Travel Pokémon read. She heard the same sound and saw the Pokémon across the clearing, etching more symbols onto the wood below the first message.

Celebi huffed, "I don't know what game you're playing, but nobody but me moves that… fast…" A thought occurred to her and she fluttered around the tree, seeing an identical Pokémon holding their Iron Thorn and waiting. They looked at her with blank eyes and Celebi glanced between them and their twin.

"Are you two… trying to _trick_ me into teaching you how to read?" she asked bemusedly.

Neither answered and the one on the far side of the clearing finished writing at the tenth letter. Once done, they simply walked to hide behind the tree as if Celebi couldn't see them doing it.

Shaking her head at the somewhat childish strategy, she flew over and read aloud, intentionally enunciating each letter, "'Srcykqijlh'."

Celebi heard a poof and looked to see that the one behind her tree had vanished, leaving the Iron Thorn behind. She turned to check on the other, sure that they were the original, but when she got there, they hadn't tried to run away. Instead, they just stood there, drumming their fingers one at a time against their leg, as if counting until a proper moment to do something.

"You know, that's not going to do you much good," she advised. "There are multiple ways to pronounce those let-" Then it occurred to her that several of her words probably wouldn't be understood if this strange Pokémon didn't know how to read. Trying for simpler words, she said, "If you need me, come back here. I'll help you learn to read."

They didn't give any verbal response, and when they disappeared, Celebi realized she'd been talking to a Substitute.

'Oh well,' she shrugged. 'The original got my message. It was nice to have some not crazy company. Well… I think not crazy. Wait… Didn't somebody tell me something a while back about two that would come looking for me? A… human and a Pokémon… Well, that one isn't like any Pokémon I've ever seen… Could they be…?'

Celebi smiled, "Things are sure to get more interesting soon… Well, 'soon-ish'~"

The time traveler giggled as she felt hope bubble up in her.

* * *

Nate twitched as they felt the second clone give them another chance to review the information and memorize the sounds the Pokémon had used to speak the letters they'd written.

When they got to the memory of the flying Pokémon's offer (the part they could understand, anyway), they paused for a moment before deciding to send a substitute to see them after today's sparring session with Treecko.

Nate prized knowledge above all else, so if someone offered, they would readily take it. But that didn't mean they would be careless.

* * *

Celebi hovered invisibly in her clearing absently whiling away the time until something happened. She heard footsteps and kept herself hidden while watching to see who came in.

The human appeared in the Black Swamp, looking around as if searching and she could tell from the blank eyes that they were another clone of the original. They held a single Iron Thorn and got onto their hands and knees, beginning to draw the footprint runes separately into the dirt.

After watching them for a bit, Celebi decided that the substitute had come to accept her offer in the original's stead. Judging by the camouflage, if the original wore the same, the pink Pokémon guessed that the human hadn't lived as long as they did by being careless. They probably wanted to test her offer before accepting.

Celebi appeared in her flash of light and the clone regarded her with their blank-eyed look before standing up and turning to face her.

"Hello!" she greeted. The clone nodded in acknowledgment and Celebi continued, "I'm Celebi. You are…?"

"Nate…" they replied simply.

Celebi nodded and said, "So you're here for my help?" She made sure to use small words, since she figured Nate didn't know very many.

The clone nodded again.

"You don't talk much, do you?" the time traveler asked.

Nate's double shook their head.

Celebi giggled and said, "Well, let's get started."

* * *

Nate's time learning with Celebi improved his capability by leaps and bounds. Once he accepted that she just wanted to help, he met with her in person and brought Treecko along both so he could keep an eye on him and let the Grass-type learn too.

Over the years, Nate and Treecko returned to Black Swamp daily (?) after foraging and their daily spar. The two had learned to read and write as well as whatever else Celebi could teach them, some basic math and other principles of everyday life, like gender (which made a _very_ awkward conversation for the pink Pokémon). One day, Nate couldn't take it anymore and asked something that had been on his mind from the beginning.

"Why are you helping us?"

Celebi looked surprised at the abrupt question and Treecko, who didn't have as much experience outside of the hideout as Nate did, mirrored her reaction. The only beings he had met besides the Sableye on that day were Nate and Celebi, so he had figured that everybody could be good if they wanted to be.

The Time Travel Pokémon tilted her head, "Pardon?"

" _Why_ are you _helping_ us?" Nate repeated. "I've lived in this world long enough to know that others never do something for nothing. Why would you help us learn more? Any other Pokémon would attack us or turn us over to the Sableye or Dusclops…"

Celebi giggled, "Well, I'm not just _any_ Pokémon. I'm me~"

The human pinched the bridge of his nose beneath his mask and said, "That's not the point, and you know it."

"Nate, are you sure she's not just being nice?" Treecko asked. "I mean, _you_ saved _me_ all those years ago, without anything in return."

Nate smiled, but sighed, as if Treecko still had much to learn, "My 'return' was not feeling guilty from abandoning a helpless Pokémon and I gained a good friend too."

The Wood Gecko Pokémon smiled back. Learning what the word "friend" meant had been one of the greatest moments of his life.

Nate turned his attention back to Celebi, "So why? And tell me the truth."

Celebi thought for a moment. She couldn't tell the whole truth or the plan would become unhinged. But… pretending for a moment that she'd never met that Staravia, the pink Pokémon could think of a fairly good reason off the top of her head.

"The two of you represent a hope for the future."

Nate blinked in surprise, as if not expecting that answer, so Celebi pressed on, "I never left this clearing often, but when I did, I never saw Pokémon banded together. Except for those rotten Sableye, everyone kept to themselves. But you two… You look out for each other. Seeing such a connection, it gives me hope for a new future—a future of light."

"…Light?" the duo asked. While they had covered some subjects, they had never heard that particular word uttered.

Celebi smiled and spent the next few hours explaining what she knew.

* * *

Books started disappearing at a more rapid pace from the stockade. Dusclops suspected that Nate had begun his investigation of the planet's paralysis, stealing books that Primal Dialga himself had ordered to be plundered from the mainland. The former Temporal Pokémon sought to remove knowledge of the past from the world below, so they wouldn't remember the past and try to change it back.

'Unfortunately for him,' Dusclops amusedly thought as he chased down Nate with two Sableye, 'that gives the human all the research material he needs, so long as he's audacious enough to steal it.'

Nate's Substitutes had improved drastically over time, able to communicate verbally with surprising eloquence and even make independent decisions. The only possible way to differentiate the original from his clones was the bag that the original carried, since he wouldn't leave items behind.

Even though his heart wasn't in the chase, Dusclops shot a Shadow Punch to make it seem otherwise, hitting Nate in the back from his own shadow beneath. The human shouted in pain from the impact before disappearing in a puff of smoke, dropping the bag.

"Wheh-heh?!" one of the Sableye shouted. "Another fake?!"

The other one pointed at the fallen item, "But the bag!"

Dusclops grabbed it and tipped it upside down to reveal only one green book and rocks (not even Gravelrocks, just plain stones) as the contents. He picked up the book and grumbled, "'Landscape Illustrations by Vincent the Smeargle…' **(1)** We've been led on a false chase! Quick! Shadow travel back to the stockade and fan out!"

"Yes, Master Dusclops!"

* * *

All three of the ghosts turned into shadows and vanished, leaving the bag and items behind. With them gone, another Nate came in from nearby, having been sticking to the shadows to follow them, relying on his suit and stealth for camouflage.

Picking up the book, the clone started making his way back to the hideout. This book wasn't necessary to their mission, but the original had made special mention of retrieving it as a gift for Treecko.

* * *

"Nate…" Treecko asked one day as his friend got ready to keep watch while Treecko rested. "You sent your clones to the stockade, right?"

"Yes," Nate responded while double-checking the security of their current hideout.

Treecko turned to face him from the bed of leaves, "When can I go to help you?"

The human paused a moment, something extremely telling to one who knew him as well as Treecko. After that, he resumed his surveying and replied, "The stockade is dangerous. Primal Dialga himself lives there. I don't tread there lightly, and _never_ in _person_. I'd never allow you within two hundred meters, if I could help it."

"I'm strong!" Treecko protested. "You've taught me everything I know about fighting. I'm even stronger than the Pokémon of Dusk Forest! I can help!"

Nate smiled and walked over, done with his task. He kneeled next to Treecko, "One day, you'll help, Treecko. But… while I've taught you everything _you_ know, I haven't taught you everything _I_ know."

The Grass-type pouted and his friend internally added, 'And I won't.'

Ever since musing on what exactly his mission meant, Nate wanted Treecko to retain his innocence while he handled everything. Oh, he trained him and would certainly take the Grass-type with him when he tracked down the cause of the planet's paralysis and put an end to it. After all, Treecko deserved to see the things the two of them had read about. But he felt a strong desire to shield the Pokémon from the ugly reality, to make his life with him happy. At least, what remained of it.

It didn't take a genius to figure out why Primal Dialga would want the world to stay this way. All Nate had to do was ask one simple question: What happens to the future when history changes?

Obviously, the future changes to match the new events. So what happens to the old future?

Since the events never happen, the corresponding future never happens.

Pushing that thought away, Nate patted Treecko on the back, "Come. You need rest after today's spar. Let me sing you to sleep."

The Wood Gecko Pokémon didn't seem all too happy, but smiled a bit. Nate had written a lullaby just for him using the tune that he used to hum. A song about the passage of time—the seasons and living to old age after a life of adventure.

Treecko closed his eyes and Nate began singing—softly, so as to not give away their position.

 _"_ _There o-o-nce was a hero traveling every which way~  
"Trav'ling 'cross four vales for his place to say good-bye…"_

* * *

He had to wait a long time before he felt he'd learned enough to do a solo raid, and even longer for Nate to be tired enough to require actual sleep.

Regardless, after a particularly long sparring session, Nate became tired out from using Substitute too many times. Even with reducing the allotted energy to each copy to five percent, Treecko could move much faster and had learned to dodge the various projectiles. He wanted to take an Oran Berry, but the Grass-type convinced his friend to save their supplies by getting some sleep.

Nate fought against the notion, saying that he only needed to sit down for a few minutes, but Treecko finally managed to convince him to lie down on the bed of leaves.

Knowing just how lightly he slept, the Pokémon waited for a few moments until his friend's breath evened out and deepened. Then he moved with as much silence as he could to leave the hideout. One single misstep or sound would alert Nate and have him awake, even if only to escape the threat rather than fight it.

Moving the leaves that camouflaged the entrance, and carefully setting them back in place without a rustle, Treecko left for the stockade, only allowing himself to disturb any foliage after putting some distance between himself and Nate.

* * *

Treecko moved stealthily through the corridors, sticking to the ceiling where the shadows gathered and avoiding the lanterns that illuminated the floors of the halls. Once he reached the stockade's library, he noted the two Sableye guards standing by the doorway and smirked.

'Too easy.'

He moved silently, crawling down the wall above them and going through the doorway from the top. Once he reached the other side, he dropped to the ground and started searching the shelves for something he thought would be useful.

But his blood ran cold when a high-pitched laugh rang in his ears, "Wheh-heh-heh!"

He wheeled around and saw that three Sableye had surrounded him against the shelf. Abandoning any thought of choosing a book in particular, Treecko scrambled up the bookcase, grabbing one before tipping it over on the Darkness Pokémon. Using the distraction generated, he dashed past the stunned guards with Agility while they still looked at the toppled shelf. The three Sableye rose from the wreckage, a little surprised, but with their ghostly forms unharmed by the debris.

The Wood Gecko Pokémon hardly paid any of his surroundings any mind, now solely focused on running away with his book. Using his raw speed, he managed to outrun any opponents he encountered. But a beastly roar, something that Treecko had never heard before in his life, stunned him momentarily.

The sound shook the Grass-type to his core with fear. It made the Pokémon instinctually want to hide somewhere, but he realized the more important fact that the entire building knew of his presence now.

* * *

Nate's eyes snapped open at the distant, but very enraged roar. He recognized it as Primal Dialga's alarm of an intruder.

'He didn't.'

A quick survey of the hideout told him all he needed to know, making him get up and grab his bag to take a Quick Seed out.

'He _did_.'

He crunched it down and formed two Substitutes afterward. With the group's enhanced speed, they dashed out of the hideout, Nate leaving behind a one percent energy Substitute to fix the camouflage back into place before dispelling.

* * *

As Treecko kept running, Sableye surrounded him from all of the intersecting pathways in an instant. They pounced with their claws brandished, intent on hitting him with a group Fury Swipes. Luckily, Treecko managed to activate his Detect and used his smaller size to avoid the attacks while squirming his way through the crowd.

Using Agility again, he left them behind, still holding the book and fleeing down the path he remembered to the entrance. When he saw the stone doors, he redoubled his pace and used a Quick Attack to barge one of them open. His presence was already widely known, why waste time trying to move it with his small arms?

As he kept running, he had to skid to a stop, barely managing to dodge a massive light gray fist crashing into the ground in front of him.

He looked up and saw a massive gray Ghost Pokémon. They had a round body with two long arms and a ghost tail. Two gold bracelets wrapped around the middle of each arm with a manacle-like dark gray bracelet around each wrist. The same gold material made a menacing face with a jagged mouth across their stomach. Looking up to their face, a red pupil stared down at him from a black eye.

"You're not the human," the Pokémon grunted irritably. Then he regarded the book that Treecko carried, "An accomplice?"

"Master Dusknoir!" the Sableye cheered as they caught up.

Dusknoir looked up at them, "You not only get outwitted by the human at every turn, but you need me to step in for this whelp?"

Treecko took that opportunity to try using Agility to slip away, but he didn't even get three steps away before his shadow darkened and a massive fist slammed into his gut. Since the book was held against him, the cover jabbed him and the Grass-type coughed up some blood as the force traveled through the tome.

'What…?! How could anyone be this strong?!' he thought as he fell to the ground. It had felt like his insides got rearranged.

"Pathetic," Dusknoir sneered. "Sableye, ready him for execution. And spread the word that Treecko the Thief will perish for his crime. That ought to get the human's attention."

Dusknoir started moving to go inside while the Sableye surrounded Treecko. But as he looked around hopelessly, a white orb flew into his view. Recognizing it, the Wood Gecko Pokémon hurriedly shut his eyes.

* * *

When Dusknoir's shadow extended in front of him and the corridor of the stockade lit up, he knew Nate had made his appearance. His Sableye cried out in pain from the blinding light and the Gripper Pokémon heard another voice, Treecko, perhaps, shout.

"No! They're after you, Nate! Get out of here! Run!"

Dusknoir wheeled around after the light went out, surveying the battlefield. The Sableye stood dazed and three Nates stood in the center, one having a bag over his shoulder and another holding Treecko.

Wordlessly, the bag-holder passed each of the others a Blast Seed and took one for himself. The trio ripped off the lower half of their masks and ate the items. Circling about, they breathed flames on the Darkness Pokémon, driving them further back and opening a path for them to flee. The lead Nate also took a Stun Seed and threw it at Dusknoir, but he dissolved into shadows to dodge it.

They tried to run, but Dusknoir materialized in front of them. This was the only time that he'd seen them together, and if Nate had been that sheltering of Treecko, then it seemed Dusknoir would have to induce the evolution himself.

'If Martha's memories of his protective streak are true,' he mused while conjuring five Will-O-Wisp fireballs, 'I suspect that Treecko came here against Nate's wishes.'

He sent them forward, and the bagged one predictably dodged while the two others just took the attack, trying to move past Dusknoir with Treecko.

However, while his focus would ordinarily be on the item holder, Dusknoir figured that the human wouldn't trust Treecko's safety with a clone.

Pretending to attack the leader that brandished an Iron Thorn, he suddenly turned around and sent a shadow hand for the one holding Treecko. Eyes widening, that Nate tossed Treecko to another one before getting grabbed.

As Dusknoir suspected, the one with the weapon tried to attack him, but a backhanded fist with his free hand dispelled the clone, causing the item and bag to fall to the ground. Treecko gasped as the truth occurred to him and he started trying to squirm out of his holder's grip.

"Let me go!"

The clone muttered something to him, but apparently it wasn't good enough. The Grass-type's hand glowed green and he sapped his savior's energy, healing himself somewhat and causing the clone to disappear. He dropped back to the ground as Nate got reeled into Dusknoir's grasp.

Dusknoir had to repress a cringe as he squeezed the human, causing several bones to crack and pop. "Nate, was it?" he began. "You become _so_ predictable when others come into play."

The Sableye laughed along with him, even though they were injured. Treecko rushed to attack him, but Dusknoir wreathed his free hand in fire (intentionally putting more in the appearance than the actual heat) and knocked the Pokémon away.

"Enough," he told Treecko. "We have no further use for you now that we have Nate—the real Nate. Your reckless desire to prove yourself to him served us very well! You have our most _sincere_ gratitude."

The Sableye all laughed at him and Treecko grew angry with himself. Dusknoir joined in, forcing himself to laugh along until a pain shot up his arm, making him cry out.

"Gah!"

All of the laughing abruptly stopped and Dusknoir turned to see Nate giving his own input by biting fiercely on the Ghost-type's large thumb.

"Hmph," he grunted, holding his other fist up to the human's face, "the futile struggles of the condemned." He flicked Nate in the forehead, making his head whip back and let go of the thumb.

Nate panted, but said through the pain, "No one… disrespects… my friend…"

"Wheh-heh…? Your friend?" a Sableye asked, looking between the human and Treecko. The Sableye broke out laughing again.

"Wheh-heh-heh! Death by his friend!"

"How sad…" Dusknoir jeered, while keeping a close eye on Treecko as he grew even angrier and started to pull himself up. "Brought down in the end by your own compassion? It's enough to make me shed a tear, Nate. But this is the end, for you!"

"No!" Treecko leaped onto his arm and sapped energy with Mega Drain, but the Ghost Pokémon hardly felt it. He slapped Treecko off, silently urging him, 'Hurry…! I don't actually want to do this!'

Treecko managed to correct himself in the air and rushed back at Dusknoir with Agility, his eyes glowing green with Detect in order to dodge some Shadow Punches that he shot. The Grass-type hit him with Pursuit, but Dusknoir simply bounced him away with his larger bulk.

"Pesky speed…" Dusknoir grumbled before holding a hand out. "If you wish to join your so-called friend, then I'll be glad to oblige!"

Treecko got slowed down considerably when Dusknoir used Gravity and the Sableye tried to swarm him, but Treecko used Screech to stun them before grabbing one and using Mega Drain again to heal his wounds.

The Sableye tried clawing at him, but those wounds healed as well and Treecko just kept stealing energy until the Darkness Pokémon passed out, form flickering.

"Bah!" Dusknoir grunted, secretly glad to have an excuse to dismiss his henchmen. "You're just giving him more energy! Fall back! I can't trust you to hold the human captive, so I'll have to deal with this pest myself."

The Sableye did so, and Dusknoir floated forward. Treecko glared at him while crouched on all fours and he used Agility at the same time that the ghost used Gravity. Moving at a more manageable speed for Dusknoir, he fought against the Gripper Pokémon, but found himself too easily swatted aside.

"You're weak, and puny," he jeered, still trying to goad his evolution. "Your power is leagues beneath my own, and the last bastion of resistance this world had to offer will die today!"

Treecko just roared angrily in response, his voice not quite up to the task with its pitch, but he surged forward again and Dusknoir grew hopeful as he saw the Wood Gecko Pokémon spark white.

He kept pressing while sending a Dark Pulse that got dodged relatively easily, "In fact, maybe I should forgo the official execution and kill Nate while I have him. You can't stop me."

That set Treecko off.

His body flashed white and Dusknoir shouted in surprise as he internally cheered at fulfilling his task. He recoiled as the Sableye shielded their eyes from the light. Still rushing forward, Treecko began to change and grow, moving faster as he did so. While his body grew, his tail divided into two leaves and a long leaf sprouted from his head. Three leaves grew from each arm before one set lined up and extended.

Dusknoir barely had time to register the cutting sensation before his hand got sliced clean off at the forearm. Clutching the stump, he didn't have to fake the pain.

'Just…! Just my contribution to the cause…!' he tried to reassure himself through the agony.

The light faded just in time for the newly evolved Pokémon to catch Nate and pry Dusknoir's hand loose from around him. Treecko had completed his evolution into Grovyle.

Dusknoir concentrated and extended a wisp of shadow from his main body's arm to the severed portion. Once it linked, the hand turned to dark energy and pulled back into him before a new hand formed from the recycled matter.

"You won't get away with-"

In the time that it took him to say that, Grovyle dashed with Nate to grab the bag and threw a Totter Seed at Dusknoir. It flew much faster than when Nate threw items, and he was caught off guard as it burst into yellow smoke. He could still sense them with his secret psychic powers, but he internally grinned as this gave him an excuse to throw off anybody trying to pursue them.

"Wah!" He held his hands to his face as his vision became muddled. "You…! Where are you?!"

Dusknoir started lashing out "blindly" with Shadow Punches, launching the attacks from every shadow except the retreating ones. With Grovyle's speed they were out of his range in a matter of seconds anyway.

"M-Master Dusknoir! Gah!" a Sableye cried as he got hit.

Another ducked a wild swing and said, "C-control yourself!"

'Forget that!' he internally retorted. 'This is the most fun I've had in _ages_!'

"Where are you, Nate?! Grovyle?! I know you're hiding here somewhere!"

* * *

Nate could only marvel at how their positions had been reversed from the first time that he took in Tree- Grovyle.

His friend's gaze strictly focused on the landscape in front of him, Nate could hardly believe that his friend had evolved. He'd read about Luminous Spring, but he figured evolution to be impossible now.

'Then again, it looks like I've been proven wrong on that point twice in one day.'

Dusclops being a Dusknoir now was… disconcerting, to say the least. But Nate put that thought away for another time and focused on Grovyle's display of ability.

'All his abilities built up as a Treecko just got magnified. His speed above all else,' he thought.

Once they got back to the hideout, Grovyle set Nate down on the bed along with his bag and immediately went to get an Oran Berry from the bags that made up their supplies. When he got back, he handed the berry to Nate, but wouldn't meet his eyes for some reason.

Nate took the berry, but raised an eyebrow underneath the remaining part of his mask, "…What's wro-"

"I'm sorry!" Grovyle abruptly said, while he held a hand over his face. "This is all because of me. I did something completely reckless, went against all of your warnings, and put you in mortal danger on top of it all! I'm sorr-"

"Grovyle," Nate interrupted. "This is as much my fault. If I'd just trusted you more, perhaps I could've gotten us both in and out without alerting anybody. Or at least having them chase a clone. I guess I just always saw that helpless Treecko I saved from the Sableye whenever I looked at you."

"But-" Grovyle started.

"But nothing." Nate sat up, and Grovyle held a hand out to help as he cradled his ribs, but the human continued anyway, "You've far outstripped me in combat and keeping you out of future fights would do more harm than good. But… there's something you should know about our mission, and what the end will look like for us."

Grovyle remained silent, figuring that Nate would answer the unspoken question.

"There's a reason that Primal Dialga wants to prevent history from changing and keeps all record of the past in his stockade," Nate elaborated. "His one dominating instinct is self-preservation. He knows it, Dusknoir likely does, Celebi knows, I know. My mission to change history will make this timeline cease to exist. All of the Pokémon that live here will disappear to make way for the new timeline."

Grovyle's eyes widened and he sat down in shock. Nate nodded, "I understand that it's a lot to take in. I also wouldn't blame you if you wanted to leave in light of this-"

"Never," Grovyle replied immediately. He stood up again, "I'll admit, I'm surprised. But if you're going to change history, then I'll be with you every step of the way. Either way, it's not like Dusknoir and Primal Dialga will overlook all that we've done so far if we give up."

Nate nodded, "We're pretty much dead men walking."

"Why not give a different future a chance?" Grovyle agreed.

* * *

Dusknoir floated along his patrol route, he had passed his message on to Team Rapid and Martha said that she'd meet him later in his route. She didn't specify where, but he had a feeling he'd know when she arrived.

While his psychic powers couldn't sense them, he still knew whether or not the Sableye followed him. Ghost and Dark-type Pokémon flew under his radar, but therein lay the weakness of their evasion. A persistent patch that the Gripper Pokémon _couldn't_ sense gave away their location. The only way they could counter this is if they knew and willingly allowed him to sense them, which would also give away their location and intention. Thus, Dusknoir had a foolproof system to tell whether or not his henchmen were onto him.

As he didn't sense either of the aforementioned features, Dusknoir knew that his meeting was secure.

Continuing to move down the path he'd walked and flown more times than he cared to count, he suddenly felt that "void" presence up ahead. Moving slightly faster, the Ghost-type knew he'd have to shadow travel to make up for lost time. Or else he'd draw suspicion by returning late.

A quadruped figure moved from the shadows, and Dusknoir lit the area up with Will-O-Wisp to confirm the appearance and then demanded in a warning tone, "Who goes there?"

'A widow waiting in the wings,' she mentally answered, willingly opening her mind to him.

Dusknoir nodded at the proper response and doused the flames before responding in the same manner, 'It's been too long since we've met in person, Martha. I wish we didn't require all of these security measures.'

'If Primal Dialga got wise and hired a Ditto to impersonate me, then everything would be shot,' the Umbreon thought while looking down in frustration. Then she looked up, 'You say Grovyle has joined Nate?'

'Yes. Turns out he'd been with Nate all along, as a Treecko. With what you've told me of his character, and how dearly they care for each other, I wager that he'd taken the Pokémon in when he was young. With both of them together and not knowing when and if I'd encounter them like so again, I had to take certain…' Dusknoir searched for the right word, 'measures, in my charade. I'm not proud of them, but now Nate and Grovyle are the pair in your past memories. They could travel back in time at any moment now, and I won't have time to visit you before Primal Dialga would send me after them.'

Martha nodded, 'I know. Get ready, and I'll do the rest.'

Dusknoir put a hand over the leader's head and examined the memories she put forth to find what he needed to do while in the past. Once finished, he simply nodded and she nodded back before burrowing underground. Dusknoir became enveloped in shadows as he took a shortcut to compensate for the time he'd spent on the rendezvous.

* * *

 **Lying in wait for the right moment.**

 **Notes:**

 **1\. Shoutout to ProfessorLugia, using one of his characters. Check out his stories; they're quite interesting and his Firestorm series is one of my favorites.**

 **See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


	4. Look Around, There's Another Mask

Chapter 4: Look Around, There's Another Mask Behind You

Nate spent quite a while resting, even if he couldn't tell exactly how long. Still, while confined to his bed with Grovyle out getting supplies, he had time to think about his own ability.

Grovyle had outstripped him in the physical aspects even before he'd evolved. But the human didn't get as far and survive as long as he had by doing nothing with his own strengths. He thought back to when Dusknoir had him captured. He'd bitten the Gripper Pokémon's thumb, and it had done damage—enough to make the powerful Pokémon cry out.

He knew about biting attacks and how they were effective against ghosts, but he had figured it to be some aspect of Dark Pokémon that fueled them. But a, for all intents and purposes, Normal-type like himself had been able to damage Dusknoir when he never recalled being able to lay a hand on the Sableye without the assistance of items.

It wasn't a happy memory for Nate. Soon after he'd first been on the run from the Sableye, one managed to corner him. Nate had punched and kicked, but all of them went straight through the Darkness Pokémon, while they laughed the entire time and slowly brandished their claws. Even biting didn't work back then. He had only been saved because he'd picked up a rock and bashed the Sableye over the head until they passed out before running.

'What was different?' he puzzled while recovering. 'Survival instinct clearly isn't it, otherwise that Sableye would've been dead from my regular-' His thoughts screeched to a halt as he figured it out.

Dusknoir had done more than just capture him. He had convinced the then Treecko that it was his fault—had mocked him along with the Sableye. And beneath all that, Nate knew that if Treecko didn't flee, the ghosts would kill him too. That was what pushed him over the limit and made him attack even in his bound state. All of those feelings of anger and protectiveness boiled together to one desire that Nate could strangely say that he'd never felt before.

He'd wanted to kill Dusknoir.

Not knock him out so they could get away, nor do so in self-defense when he had no choice. He hated the large ghost and wanted him dead. It was quite the daunting realization, as he and Grovyle had never actually killed any Pokémon that tried to attack them. Most truly didn't know better and were just angry or confused. But Nate also realized that it would finally give him the edge he needed against Ghost-type Pokémon—even more so if he fully perfected his Substitutes.

Realizing that he could be working on this right now, Nate wondered why he was still resting in bed.

* * *

Grovyle stealthily made his way back to their current hideout. Admittedly, he missed his small size since it was easier to stay out of sight that way. But he could still move silently, and the speed made the transformation worth it. It boggled his mind how fast he could move now. While he'd been formidable before, now none of the Pokémon around could even touch him.

'Still…' he thought with a slight frown, 'It'll be difficult to grow stronger on such comparatively weak foes.'

The Wood Gecko Pokémon moved aside the leaves camouflaging the entrance to their hideout and stepped inside, seeing Nate right where he'd left him. His eyes were already open, having been woken up by Grovyle's entrance.

"Good to see you back, Grovyle," Nate said in greeting. "Is the new form treating you well?"

He nodded, "Yes, getting supplies is much easier now. I just wish I didn't have to leave you here alone."

"We both know I'm never truly alone," the human pointed out while looking at the bag next to the bed of leaves. "If anybody stumbled into this hideout, all it would take is one clone and a Stun Seed. Worst case scenario: It's Dusknoir and I eat a Warp Seed before having a clone carry me away."

"True, true," Grovyle granted with a shake of his head. But then he looked closely at Nate's drifting gaze, "Are you okay, Nate? You seem a bit distant."

"I've had some time to think. Grovyle, you know Pursuit, correct?" Nate asked.

Grovyle raised an eyebrow, "Yes… Why?"

"Pursuit: a move meant to strike at retreating forces," he recited. "In other words, an attack to the opponent's back meant to take them down before they can get away. But if you use the same attack from the front, it hardly does anything."

"Nate-"

The human continued, "Bite and Crunch, attacks that tear into the opponent's flesh, yet able to connect with Ghost Pokémon. Feint Attack, a dishonest maneuver that can range from targeting weak points to simply misdirecting the opponent before attacking. And Dark Pulse is simply pure concentrated malice."

"Where are you going with this?" the Grass-type asked.

Nate crossed his arms, "Even if the Bite connected regularly, it shouldn't have done that much damage with my weak jaw muscles. Yet it made such a strong impact on a fully evolved Pokémon like Dusknoir. I think that the main fueling component of Dark-type attacks is malice. And beyond malice, killing intent gives an even greater boost."

"Killing intent…" Grovyle muttered. "You know… it had never occurred to me that we might have to kill certain Pokémon if they tried to get in our way."

"Nor to me," his friend agreed with a nod. "But coming to terms with that has given me a sort of peace. For decades – centuries, however long we've been around – I've tried to make a perfect representation of myself for a Substitute clone. Now it's as if I found the last piece of my identity."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't like the idea anymore than you do, but I'll do whatever it takes to see our mission through, even if it means harnessing these awful emotions to grant an edge against an opponent like Dusknoir," Nate vowed.

Grovyle remained silent for a moment, and then decided to change the subject, "You mentioned some progress with your clones?"

"You're looking at it," the human answered.

The Pokémon blinked and Nate disappeared in a puff of smoke before his eyes. The leaves of the bed stirred slightly as the real Nate surfaced from the bunch. With his outfit and the other leaves, Grovyle hadn't noticed his hiding.

Still, Grovyle's eyebrow started twitching after the shock wore off.

"What did I tell you about exerting yourself while recovering?" he asked while Nate bundled the leaves back under himself.

"You said 'stay in bed,' and I stayed in bed," he dryly commented. "Besides, it was just a five percent clone."

* * *

'Having already earned a reputation of my own somehow, I should hear word of Wigglytuff Guild's expedition,' Dusknoir mentally listed to himself while patrolling, 'I visit them the day after their return, mill around Treasure Town for a day until I get called by the Kecleon brothers for a conversation early in the morning…'

The ghost's eye narrowed, 'What next…? Ah, yes, the Marill and Azurill had been talking with them, according to the conversation after Amp Plains. If I just wait for that, then I should be fine. Once that occurs, word of Grovyle should reach the guild and the hunt for the Time Gears will begin.'

Internally satisfied, Dusknoir felt thankful that his memory was still sharp as ever. He needed to recall every detail of the memories Martha shared with him in order to prevent his allies' premature erasure from this future. Even a few words out of place could drastically alter the events via ripple effect.

'Nobody will find anything on the first day of searching after Chatot, Wigglytuff and I draft up a list of possible locations…' he continued.

"Master Dusknoir…" a Sableye called.

Slipping his mask back on, Dusknoir stopped and turned his head, "What could be so important that you interrupt my patrol?"

"Wheh-heh…" his minion chuckled nervously. "Master Dialga has summoned you."

"Hmm… I see," the Gripper Pokémon responded. "Thank you, Sableye, I shall report at once."

As he shadow traveled back to Temporal Tower, Dusknoir wondered if today was the day. He ignored the stockade and flew straight up to the top of the structure frozen in collapse.

'If Dialga is calling me, could that mean what I think it means?'

* * *

"This is the Passage of Time?"

Celebi nodded at Nate's question, "It'll get you back where you need to go. Unfortunately, my aim is a little bit shaky when traveling through this, but I know you'll land before Temporal Tower first collapsed."

"Then we can collect the Time Gears and begin investigating how to get back here to the Hidden Land," Grovyle finished. "What's your estimate on how long, Nate?"

"With our usual sleeping habits, and between the two of us, I'd say we can have all five Time Gears in a week," Nate answered.

The two of them had continued their research of the cause of time's destruction and found out that the Time Gears could prevent Temporal Tower's collapse. Their connection to time still lingered to this day, allowing Nate to use his ability to find where they'd been by reading books on the various mystery dungeons outside of the Hidden Land.

It hadn't been easy and required nigh endless years of research, but they ironically had plenty of time with no aging. Quite frankly, the only reason he even knew how old he'd become was Celebi

Nate had also perfected his style of utilizing the killing intent to fuel Dark-type attacks that he improvised. Even with his meager strength, he could take down a Mismagius all by himself if it came to that. Still, it was his final option since such negative emotions tended to cloud his thoughts.

To minimize the effects and allow him to practice harnessing the dark emotion, he'd taken to meditating with Grovyle, who had been more than happy to help him with staving off the side-effects.

"Are you ready, partner?" Grovyle asked.

Nate looked up at his friend and nodded, "Let's change history and make sure that none of this _ever_ happens."

"I'll stay here," Celebi volunteered. "If either of you get captured, you'll need a way back."

* * *

"You've detected a temporal pathway, Master Dialga?"

The Temporal Pokémon growled in response, having long lost the ability to articulate.

Dusknoir nodded gravely, "I see… I will prepare to intercept and capture the time travelers. But I must study the past before I can effectively pursue them. By your leave, Master Dialga?"

He held a hand to his chest and bowed respectfully, careful to stay submissive to Primal Dialga. If he kept up his act just a little bit longer, then he would soon have to bow to the former Lord of Time no more.

Once Primal Dialga dismissed him, Dusknoir made his way back down to the stockade. As he made his way to the library, he had an idea to ensure Martha would get information. Turning down a different direction, he headed for the vault where the Temporal Pokémon stored all of the TMs they found.

Persuading the Sableye guards to let him through under the pretense of preparation for his mission had been laughably easy. Once he found the one he needed, he applied it and left, shoving the disc into one of the guard's hands with the order to have it recycled by one of the resident Magnemite.

He knew that Nate's Substitutes were a caliber above any standard clone. But he would have quite a bit of time before beginning his act with Wigglytuff's Guild, and he'd heard the theory behind it from Martha during their years together. If he could perfect it, then once he got back to the future with Grovyle, he could safely send a clone to the hideout with information, depending on how the situation developed.

He internally frowned as he made his way back to the library. Martha didn't know what happened between the point where Dusknoir took Grovyle back to the future and where Celebi went back.

'The only thing that would prevent Grovyle from going back would be if he lost hope,' the Ghost-type mused. 'But he no longer fears me, even if pushed into a battle with me.'

Dusknoir carefully shoved his thoughtful look under a mask of indifference as he arrived at the library.

'We'll just have to improvise and hope for the best that everything works out in keeping with the events of the resistance's formation.'

* * *

'How could things have gone this wrong?!' Nate growled internally as he focused on trying to hold onto Grovyle.

The instant they'd begun traveling to the past, a storm seemed to form in the path. It muted the blinding light, allowing them to keep their eyes open and focus on their grip, but thunder and lightning crashed around them, keeping them on edge as gale force winds raged against them.

Nate's outfit had long since fallen apart to the elements, but he kept trying to hold on to his friend and partner's hands. Despite his determination, though, his human body couldn't hold out against the battering forces.

Grovyle seemed to notice and shouted over the wind, "No! Don't let go! Just a little longer… Come on! Hang on!"

But the human had already felt darkness sweeping into the corners of his vision as his hand started slipping.

"N-n-no!" he grunted. He looked at Grovyle, "I can't… hold on…!"

He saw something behind the Grass-type in the illuminating lightning—nothing definite, but a flying shadow traveling alongside them. What made Nate's blood run cold and vision clear was the familiar stance with its hands held at its side. The human had seen Dusknoir use that stance through his clones' eyes when readying to fire an attack. He made his decision in a heartbeat.

Swinging Grovyle around to take the attack with his back, he saw the shadow thrust its hands out and fire a massive beam of energy out of the corner of his eye before the figure was out of his sight. Nate shut his eyes and grit his teeth ready to endure the hit to protect his friend.

Searing pain tore into his body before darkness overtook him with a vengeance. He heard Grovyle scream out, apparently having suffered residual effects from the attack. Nate could only spare one more thought before he slipped away.

'Live… Grovyle…'

* * *

Dusknoir stood in front of the dimensional hole Primal Dialga had made. He'd also been given a bit of the Temporal Pokémon's energy to make his own once he found Grovyle and Nate.

He didn't bother with pleasantries, knowing that they'd fall on deaf ears where Primal Dialga was involved. Dusknoir floated straight into the portal. He already decided which discoveries he'd make to garner his reputation.

As he got pulled into the blinding timestream, he allowed a private smile before passing out.

'It's not perfect yet, by any stretch, but it will get the message across.'

* * *

"I have a message for you, Martha."

The Pokémon of the resistance stared as an exceptionally nervous Dusknoir clone kept checking over its shoulder. Even though they were in their underground hideout, the double still acted as if Primal Dialga himself would come bursting through the ceiling.

"Well?" the leader of Team Rapid's allies asked as the Substitute's eye checked above them again. "Spit it out."

"Sorry," it apologized. "I think the original overbalanced my paranoia due to the import of this message. He's been sent back in time to pursue Nate and Grovyle. Due to the effects of time travel, by our perception, he should be back any moment with Grovyle in captivity."

"What?!" Tempest shouted, wings buzzing. "Then we need to get moving!"

Martha shook her head before turning to the trio from outside Team Rapid, "No 'we.' Just me and you three."

Another of the allies chuckled nervously, "Why us?"

"Causing trouble and running away is your specialty," she dryly replied. "For one reason or another, Grovyle and Dusknoir returned here to the future, but only Celebi and Dusknoir went back to the past. I'm not going to sugarcoat it; Grovyle probably died."

Some of her teammates let out a sigh, thinking that they would have to sit and watch again.

"But," Martha continued, "that doesn't have to be true. All that has to happen to spur Nate on to carry out the mission himself is for Grovyle to not make it back to the past yet and Celebi to _think_ that Grovyle will die."

"So what do you need us for?" the other leader gruffly questioned.

She regarded him, " _You,_ I need to talk to in private."

* * *

Dusknoir nodded, "I see. Well, that must have been quite a disappointment for your guild!"

"Yes, that expedition was a waste of time!" Wigglytuff said. "Didn't learn a thing about anything!"

He knew the Guildmaster was lying, but he played along with what he'd seen and crossed his arms while looking down in thought, "I had heard that Wigglytuff's Guild was mounting an expedition to Fogbound Lake. I came here hoping to hear about your latest triumph…"

Wigglytuff waved his hand, "Sorry! We didn't learn a thing!"

"Not at all!" Dusknoir said, shaking his head. "It's no trouble to me! This gave me an opportunity to visit you! I plan to stay in Treasure Town for a short while. May I visit you occasionally during my stay? Your guild constantly receives the latest news. Good information would be a big help on my explorations!"

When Wigglytuff gave his agreement and turned to address the apprentices, Dusknoir turned to face them and took this opportunity to glance around, his red pupil moving to search the crowd. After he spotted Nate, he made sure to not linger on him, only paying him the smallest of notice before turning as Chatot started speaking.

"Now, everyone, our guest might be famous… But don't embarrass us by asking him for autographs!"

"No, no!" Dusknoir chimed in. "If it's autographs you want, I'm sure that I can oblige! But… information? I'm afraid you flatter me. I have very little information. However, I would be delighted if I may be of service to you. If there is anything you wish to ask of me, please don't hesitate."

"Come now, everyone!" Chatot announced. "You're dismissed!"

Dusknoir floated up the ladder, ready to idle about Treasure Town and wait for his next interaction with the duo. He had already perfected his Substitutes, but kept them secret from everyone alongside his psychic abilities.

'Martha seems a lot more carefree in this timeline,' the Ghost-type mused. 'Not that it's too surprising, all things considered.'

Still, as he compared the images of the partner to Nate and the leader of the resistance, along with himself now and the previous incarnation he pretended to be, Dusknoir couldn't help but internally shake his head.

'Amazing how experiences can reshape one so drastically.'

* * *

"You mean…?"

"You've had a brush with death before, so you should be perfect for a plan like this. I'd do it myself if I could."

"Ha… Excuse me for not being eager to stick my neck out for you. After all of the bad times we had, it isn't the highest on my list."

"You'll pull through. You're stubborn."

* * *

Dusknoir sighed internally, 'Here comes my big moment—the jewel in my crown of lies.' He wondered if Nate felt the same, being a noble Pokémon (from what he had heard) forced to string all these innocent folk along.

So far, everything had gone according to the script. He met Nate (as Ian) and Martha, flew to Amp Plains after "coincidentally" bumping into the Kecleon brothers' discussion with Marill and Azurill, conceived the list of locations suspected to contain Time Gears alongside Wigglytuff and Chatot, and met Grovyle again in Crystal Cave.

Today, he would tell his story. The Pokémon of Treasure Town and Wigglytuff's Guild had already gathered up along with the lake guardians.

Dusknoir would've liked nothing more than to tell the actual truth about his presence in the past. But Martha had warned him that the plan she made was the only one with no chance of backfiring.

They needed to exist in order to take matters into their own hands. And if they got erased before they formed, then nobody would be left in the future to stop Primal Dialga himself from intervening to preserve his own existence.

So, with a heavy heart and his mask in place, he told the same story he had in Martha's memory—the future of darkness, Grovyle and Nate, and his own (pretended) role to stop them from paralyzing the planet.

After Azelf helped him come up with a plan and he told the other Pokémon that he would have to go alone with the trio of lake guardians, he said his last line.

Dusknoir nodded, "Thank you for hearing me out, everyone. I realize I am asking a huge favor. But please do your part in our plan. And… Let's capture Grovyle using whatever means necessary!"

The cheers from the Pokémon made him pity them. In another time, he had easily led them to doom their own world to darkness.

* * *

Martha came back with her grumbling ally and said, "Okay, we have a plan to set things properly in motion and still rescue Grovyle."

"Dusknoir," she said, turning to the skittish clone. "Once your original gets back, we'll dispel you to give him the update and then set out from here to Dusk Forest. Tell him to suggest letting Grovyle go to catch both him _and_ Celebi—or rather, 'the Pokémon that helped Grovyle and Nate time travel.'"

"But…" it replied, "how will you get there ahead of Grovyle and my original?"

The Umbreon smiled, "We may have left the guild to do this, but since our badges haven't disappeared, we're still a Gold Rank exploration team. We can warp there before either arrives and get a head start.

"Celebi's never seen either of us, so we could pretend to be regular wandering Pokémon as we pass by the Black Swamp where she lives. We won't be able to use our supplies for the first part of Dusk Forest if we want to sell it, but we can make this work," Martha finished, sounding optimistic for the first time in a while.

* * *

With Grovyle bound in ropes beside him with two Sableye, Dusknoir knew that this part had to happen, so he announced to the residents of Treasure Town, "As you can see, Grovyle is a vicious and wicked Pokémon. His defeat should result in lasting peace for your world."

"But…" he continued, intentionally seeming slightly disappointed. "I must also deliver a sad piece of news. It is time for me to return to the future. Everyone! I must now bid you farewell."

Dusknoir gave his parting requests to the lake guardians and Officer Magnezone before looking down, "Now… I'm afraid the time has come."

The Gripper Pokémon signaled his henchmen and they shoved Grovyle into the dimensional hole he'd opened before following.

"Everyone! Though it pains me…" He waited for the cries to die down before finishing, "This is goodbye…"

Dusknoir floated towards the portal, then paused at the moment his past incarnation had before. He glanced over his shoulder, regarding the Pokémon one last time and let his gaze linger on Nate for a bit.

'Please forgive me for this, Nate,' he internally pleaded as he turned back to go into the dimensional hole. 'I pray that in another time and place, we can be friends.'

* * *

The rest of Team Rapid nodded in agreement to the plan along with Dusknoir's clone, and soon after, another Dusknoir materialized from shadows, this one seeming much more collected than the other.

"Grovyle has been captured, my original is on his way to report to Primal Dialga, please tell me you have a plan," he said urgently.

In response, the nervous Substitute dismissed himself and Martha said, "Dusknoir just got all the information he needed on it." She then turned to her three allies, "Now, let's get going."

* * *

By the time Dusknoir arrived at the Temporal Pinnacle, he had worked out what to say.

"I am sorry to have kept you waiting, Master Dialga…" he apologized. "While I encountered more difficulty than anticipated… I succeeded in capturing Grovyle."

He resisted the urge to shudder as the former Lord of Time's red eyes opened and his orange patterns glowed. Primal Dialga growled.

"…I fully understand what must be done. Those who seek to alter the course of history… must be removed from history," Dusknoir said gravely. "I will see to the elimination immediately.

The Temporal Pokémon growled again.

The Ghost-type bowed with his hand on his chest, "…I understand. As you wish."

Primal Dialga's patterns faded and his eyes closed again.

Dusknoir turned around and left, already anticipating that the Sableye's Fury Swipes would accidentally cut Grovyle free and he could pretend to make the best of a bad situation with a flash of insight.

As he flew back down to the stockade, he thought over the plan in his head. Martha had told him that should Grovyle escape, for whatever reason, to let him lead them back to Celebi in Dusk Forest. From there, it would be up to him to drive Grovyle to send Celebi to the past in his stead. Only then could she act.

'I need a big enough scare so that Grovyle will send Celebi ahead for her own protection. It'll be a _very_ risky gamble, but I have to believe that Martha will come up with something to save him.'

* * *

 **The end of a timeline approaches.**

 **See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


	5. A Timely Intervention

**Before I get to the review responses, I just wanna say: "F*** the order I'm supposed to update in. I've never paid it much mind before, so I'm finishing the last chapters of this ASAP." That's my sentiment for getting this out before updating two of my other stories. I want to at least set the sequel in motion before summer is over. Now…**

 **Review Responses:**

 ** _Tony Anderson_** **: Thank you!**

 ** _PsychicEevee0103_** **: Well, you have good fics, bad fics, and fics that are kinda just "ehhh…" :P**

 ** _ProfessorLugia_** **: TBH, I had just considered that if you could** ** _time travel_** **why would you get back much later than when you left? Especially with a Pokémon like Dialga at the helm, you could probably be there and back in about five minutes. Also, you don't have to wait anymore because the chapter's here! :D**

 **On with the story!**

* * *

Chapter 5: A Timely Intervention

At the entrance of Dusk Forest, four golden circles of light appeared on the ground. They rose up as beams and Martha appeared in the front with her allies, the trio's badges glowing with the same golden light until they faded back to their Bronze Rank.

"You know, I would've expected you three to have a higher rank from how you could always somehow get ahead of us in dungeons," the Umbreon observed.

"Heh, there are other ways to get through a dungeon," one of them countered. "It's not _our_ fault you chumps always took the slow way."

Martha shook her head in dismissal as she walked up to the Kangaskhan Rock and put her paw on it to open her personal storage, "Whatever, just put your badges in so we can move through the dungeon."

"Whoa! Why do we have to put _our_ badges in _your_ storage? How do we know we'll get 'em back?" another protested.

"I have more important things to do than steal your badges," she retorted with an annoyed gaze as she dropped the Treasure Bag in as well. "Just do it; we need to hurry."

* * *

After Grovyle's escape from his execution, Dusknoir sent a token team of Sableye to pursue him, knowing that the Grass-type could easily outrun them. Meanwhile, he went back to Primal Dialga to deliver the news and offer the new plan.

When he arrived his "lord's" eyes were already glowing red with anger, the patterns flaring over his body.

"I see you have heard, Master Dialga, that Grovyle has unfortunately broken free," Dusknoir observed. "However, we can turn this situation to our advantage."

The glow faded slightly as the primal Pokémon growled.

"The Pokémon that sent him and his partner back to the past in the first place," the Ghost-type prompted. "Surely Grovyle will want to go back to help his dear friend Nate. And we can use that to capture the time traveling ally as _well_ as Grovyle."

The glow became more muted as Primal Dialga let out a light snarl.

"However, to ensure that everything goes according to plan, I must entreat you for your cooperation."

Dusknoir knew that Grovyle didn't fear him anymore, and the Sableye were mere cannon fodder as far as the Wood Gecko Pokémon was concerned. In order to pressure him into sending Celebi ahead, he needed to make him think he was about to die. He needed to instill the sense of hopelessness in Grovyle.

As he related the specifics of the plan to Primal Dialga, he internally prayed that everything would work out in the end.

* * *

Martha shambled her way through the clearing of the Black Swamp, panting through clenched teeth and constantly glancing around for effect. Nobody called out to her as she passed through, so she assumed that her little act worked.

Waiting until she was far away from the clearing, she started walking normally again and met up with two of her three allies. They had taken turns going through and only one remained, instructed to go after a short, nonspecific amount of time to avoid raising suspicion.

"You clear?" the allied trio's leader grunted.

Martha shrugged, "If she suspected anything, she certainly didn't show it. We can only hope that things stay the same."

"Heh," the other chuckled, "if anybody told me before all this that we'd be working with _you_ , I'd have busted out laughing."

The other glared at his teammate before turning the surly look to Martha, "Don't count on it to last. We're not staying all buddy-buddy with you. Once this is all over, you can bet we'll be back to messing with you!"

"Once this is all over, none of our other selves will know that this ever happened," Martha retorted. "And trust me, the feeling's mutual."

The last member of their alliance floated in and they all nodded before continuing on to Deep Dusk Forest.

* * *

Grovyle laid on the ground unconscious next to a keystone that housed a Pokémon known as Spiritomb. Dusknoir watched from the shadows and internally tutted. Having Grovyle incapacitated this early wouldn't do at all.

Deciding to risk discovery in exchange for moving the plan forward, the Gripper Pokémon emerged in the Sealed Pit, much to Spiritomb's further indignation. But before he could say anything, and possibly wake up Grovyle, Dusknoir fired a Dark Pulse at him.

Spiritomb sent his body forward as a wisp of energy to possess him, but the ghost had already slipped away and left a Substitute. While the Forbidden Pokémon was distracted, Dusknoir reappeared and slammed a Shadow Punch into his keystone.

The other Pokémon yelped and quickly pulled his essence back in before fleeing. Dusknoir nodded in satisfaction and disappeared via shadow travel back to his hiding place before Grovyle woke up.

Feeling exhausted from the malevolent possession, Grovyle sought out a hiding place for him to catch some rest.

* * *

Dusknoir met with his pretended lord again after his Sableye reported Grovyle headed to Dusk Forest. He knew that it ended with a dead end at a sequestered alcove surrounded by high cliffs, so Dusknoir figured this to be the part where he began the second phase of the strategy. The sure thing to get Grovyle to give up.

"Master Dialga," he intoned humbly. "The stage has been set for the capture of the traitor. When the time comes… It may be necessary for us to beg your help, Master Dialga…"

The primal Pokémon just growled.

"…As you wish," Dusknoir answered. He bowed with a hand to his chest, "By your leave, we shall proceed."

* * *

After a brief rest, Grovyle reached Dusk Forest and moved through it easily, knowing all of its twists, turns and Pokémon from training inside with Nate. After reaching the Black Swamp, he called out for Celebi.

'She should be here…' he thought before his eyes widened. 'Wait. What if Dusknoir figured out this location? Could she have fled? Or…?'

"Tee-hee-hee~! Good to see you again, Grovyle," a tinkling voice greeted.

Grovyle smiled slightly in relief as Celebi appeared in front of him in an orb of golden light.

"It's been too long," she added.

The Wood Gecko Pokémon nodded, "Yes, it has been a while, Celebi. I need your help again."

"I know," Celebi nodded. "Seeing you here, my dear Grovyle, tells me all that I need to know. You failed in your mission."

"Yes," Grovyle sighed. "But there's still hope. They didn't catch _both_ of us, and I fully intend to return to the past. We should keep moving. The Sableye could come by at any moment."

The time traveler giggled, "Oh, let them come! You could take them all out before they even knew what hit them. But you're right. We shouldn't take any chances."

* * *

Dusknoir took his position inside a shadow, waiting for his chance to ambush Grovyle and Celebi.

He could only hope that Martha had some sort of plan for countering his own.

Internally blinking at that, Dusknoir thought, 'Imagine that—a strategist that must try their best, and yet hopes for defeat.'

* * *

"Oh!" Celebi said in surprise. "I see it! There it is!"

Grovyle came in with Celebi to the end of Deep Dusk Forest. The Passage of Time's outline glowed, two arches giving the illusion of a corridor going into the face of the cliff while the last one representing the door had a wispy form. The passage, though, remained dormant for now, only leading to stone instead of holding a portal.

Grovyle nodded, "Celebi, only you can open the Passage of Time. Do your thing."

"Sure," she answered with a smile.

But as she fluttered forward, a new voice spoke, "Stop there! That will do!"

"That voice!" Grovyle cursed. As a pool of shadows appeared on the ground in front of them, the Grass-type lowered into a fighting stance, "Dusknoir!"

The ghost emerged from the shadows and floated forward casually, "Your scurrying carried you far… But sad to say… that's all over now."

"Wheh-heh-heh!"

Six Sableye appeared from the shadows, surrounding Grovyle and Celebi.

Grovyle gave a low grunt as the leaves on one of his arms lined up and extended to form a Leaf Blade, "That's crafty, Dusknoir. You allowed me to roam free, but you kept your eye on me the whole time… So you could capture Celebi as well as me. Hmph. I didn't see this coming. It's all my fault, Celebi."

"Oh?" the time traveler asked. "Apologies don't suit your style, my dear Grovyle!" In the time she had known him, he usually took action to remedy the situation instead of wasting time with words. "And do you honestly thing I can be caught?" she asked with a giggle.

Grovyle glanced around, ready to activate his Detect at a moment's notice, "We'll have to push our way through and dive into the Passage of Time."

"Ha! So you'll resist?" Dusknoir asked. "Spare yourself the effort. You have no chance of succeeding."

"We won't know for sure… until we try! Dusknoir! You and me! Now!" the Wood Gecko Pokémon challenged.

Shaking his head, Dusknoir smugly asked, "Grovyle, are you _really_ such a fool to think that I'd come alone?"

Grovyle's eyes widened, "Wh-what?!"

"Now, Master Dialga!"

A wave of darkness swept over the alcove, muting what little visibility remained in the area. With brief flashes of light, a sound that haunted Grovyle ever since he first heard it rang out.

"GRRR-OOOOOO!"

After the roar finished, Grovyle and Celebi looked up towards the source and saw a pair of red eyes light up in the darkness. The darkness receded, revealing Primal Dialga standing atop one of the cliffs that bordered the alcove.

The former Lord of Time roared again, and the leaves forming Grovyle's blade split again as he realized he wouldn't make it back to the past.

"That… That's…!" he uttered in disbelief. "Primal… Dialga…"

Dusknoir laughed again, "What's wrong, Grovyle? Where's your bravado now?"

Grovyle only scowled in impotent rage. Celebi noticed and put a hand to his shoulder, "My dear Grovyle…?"

"I… surrender, Dusknoir," he said gravely. "Do with me as you will."

Celebi blinked in shock, "My d-dear Grovyle?!"

"Celebi… switch to telepathy," Grovyle whispered urgently.

She didn't like where the conversation was headed, but she did so as Dusknoir said, "What's the matter, Grovyle? It's not like you to give up so easily."

"Yes. I am giving up." 'Celebi, you have to escape. Take the Passage of Time to the past and find Nate. He's a Pikachu under the alias of Ian, apprenticing at Wigglytuff's Guild in a settlement known as Treasure Town.'

Celebi gasped, but the ghosts around her interpreted it as a reaction to the Grass-type's words. 'My dear Grovyle!' she mentally communicated. 'There has to be another way!'

"But… hope is still alive," Grovyle said to Dusknoir.

Dusknoir sneered, "I suppose it is… But you can trust that I've figured out how to remedy that problem."

'I won't leave you!' Celebi refused.

'This is it for me, Celebi. Dusknoir, even with his Sableye, is one thing, but I stand no chance against Primal Dialga.'

"Regardless, I have you and Celebi here now. I can deal with you here and then I'll be free to pursue your little partner," Dusknoir gloated.

'Use your time travel powers to enter the Passage of Time,' the Wood Gecko Pokémon urged. 'I'll distract Primal Dialga so he doesn't catch on to your trail.'

Celebi started tearing up, 'Grovyle! Please, don't do this!' She looked around, hoping for something, anything to prevent this from happening. But she only saw the grinning Sableye. Privately, she wondered where on the Hidden Land that Staravia and her friends were.

"This is the end… for you!" Dusknoir triumphantly declared.

'You deserve to see the sunrise, Celebi,' Grovyle responded. 'Even more than protecting you, that's why I have to do this. You deserve at least that much for all you've done for me and Nate.'

Looking around again, Celebi knew that she didn't have time to argue further. The Sableye slowly but surely closed in and she shut her eyes, regretting that she couldn't take Grovyle's place. Even if he got away and helped Nate finish the mission, he'd never forgive her in the brief time between now and then. But before parting, she wanted him to know how she felt.

'My dear Grovyle, I-'

Grovyle stood up straighter, closing his eyes, but ready to move, 'I know. In different circumstances, maybe we would have had a chance to explore the possibility, but we don't. Please, get to the past safely.'

The Sableye were almost upon them, taking the Grass-type's closed eyes as a sign of surrender when Celebi released a flash of light and vanished. After Grovyle heard the blinded Pokémon cry out, his eyes shot open and he dashed past Dusknoir as fast as he could, leaping towards the cliff and smoothly burrowing into the face with Dig.

As Primal Dialga tried to reach out with his senses to stop Celebi, the ground burst under his feet. Grovyle sprang up, hitting the legendary Pokémon in the stomach to disrupt his concentration.

The former Temporal Pokémon's followers were so shocked at Grovyle's attack on Primal Dialga that they stood rooted while gawking.

Meanwhile, after Grovyle avoided a stomp and got out from under Primal Dialga, several large stones uprooted from the cliff he stood upon to fly at Grovyle. Readying both Leaf Blades, the Grass-type cut through the boulders in his way and repeatedly slashed Primal Dialga, even as the ones he ignored slammed into his back.

However, his assaults proved feeble as Primal Dialga raised a foreleg with a roar, the claws glowing blue. The Dragon Claw cut into Grovyle's front, leaving three diagonal slashes across his chest and abdomen. But he kept attacking until he heard a warbling sound.

The now open Passage of Time collapsed in on itself, closing up without Celebi to keep it open.

As Primal Dialga looked down, Grovyle let his blades split into the leaves that comprised them once again, at peace now that he fulfilled his duty. Once the giant Pokémon turned his furious gaze back to Grovyle, the Wood Gecko Pokémon refused to flinch or back down. He would die standing in one last act of defiance.

Primal Dialga let out a fierce roar as his tail crest expanded and the gem on his chest glowed red. Grovyle huffed a quiet chuckle through his nose at the "honor" of being executed by the legendary Pokémon's most devastating attack.

'It's all up to you, Nate.'

But right as the attack fired, the scenery around him shifted.

* * *

When Dusknoir saw a blur of motion before Primal Dialga's attack hit, he dared to hope. The indigo beam of energy blasted the entire half of the cliff where Grovyle had been, effortlessly carving the stone away.

After Primal Dialga stopped the Roar of Time, a green glowing sphere was revealed. The area behind that object was completely unmarked and he gasped with the rest of the legendary Pokémon's followers. Six glowing plates of energy appeared in a ring around the barrier as it lowered and they shot at Primal Dialga as he rested.

As they connected, a voice that Dusknoir recognized spoke up.

"That may not have done much damage, but I've been waiting a _long_ time for the chance to do that."

'Thank you, Martha!'

After that private bit of relieved praise, he demanded, "You dare to attack Master Dialga?! Identify yourself!"

The Umbreon on top of the cliff where Grovyle stood glanced down at them out of the corner of her eye with a smirk.

"Oh, just passing through," she answered sarcastically as she slid down the cliff to jump into their midst. "See, I saw this forest and thought that it'd be a nice place for a summer home- Honestly, why do you _think_ I'm here, you pompous cyclops?"

Recalling that he had just been to the past and noting that he could see her necklace from here, he narrowed his eye in suspicion, "Wait… That voice, and that necklace…" He leaned back in feigned surprise, "Impossible!"

"Who is it, Master Dusknoir?" one of the Sableye asked confusedly.

"It's…" Dusknoir growled, "Martha, an Eevee from the past. But the only way she could know of this place is if…!"

Martha smirked again, "Yup! Your other target was hiding _right_ under your nose, and you _never even noticed_."

"Ha…"

The Moonlight Pokémon raised an eyebrow.

"Hoo-hoo-ha-ha-ha!" Dusknoir laughed.

Martha's eyes narrowed, "Did I miss the joke?"

"I see, I see!" the Gripper Pokémon gloated. "The fact that _you're_ here means that Nate's failed already! Don't you see? With Celebi gone, the only one left that can choose who goes back to the past is Master Dialga! And you'll _never_ get there with his help! The fact that everything remains the same means that my plan succeeds and Nate falls!"

Meanwhile, he privately communicated to Martha, 'Have you gotten Grovyle away?'

'Working on it,' she responded. "Hope will never die. As long as this hell exists, someone will always try to find a way out."

* * *

Grovyle had been dropped into an underground chamber where he got attacked immediately. But he knew that if he could just get away from these three, then he could look into another way to return to the past. Even at three-to-one odds, he didn't fear these Pokémon the same as he feared Primal Dialga.

If only the unbearable stench didn't make it so hard to concentrate on fighting.

"Whoa-ho-ho!" a Weezing laughed. "Ready the Razor Tornado!"

A Golbat perched on his heads, "Heh-heh! Locked and loaded!"

Weezing span around with Gyro Ball as rotating blades of wind coated Golbat's wings. The result looked like a spinning top that Grovyle knew would cut his Leaf Blades straight off. Using Detect, he spotted the opportune time and used his Quick Attack to punch Golbat straight off of Weezing before blocking the Poison Gas Pokémon's advance with two crossed Leaf Blades.

"Chaw-haw…" a Skuntank panted. "We'd heard you'd be tough, but not _this_ tough! Those wounds ain't even slowing you down…"

* * *

"I suppose you spirited Grovyle away with that little stunt of yours," Dusknoir mused. "He will be annoying to track down again, but there are only so many places he can hide before we find him. He's stuck here in the future now, after all."

The Sableye started closing in around her as he continued, "And now we have one more pest we can remove."

"To quote a friend of mine," Martha retorted, "'Do you really think I'd be so stupid as to talk to you in person?'"

Dusknoir faked a growl as the Umbreon in front of them disappeared, "She learned Nate's trick. How irritating. Regardless, we've stunted anything that she and Grovyle can do by chasing off Celebi."

"Master Dialga," he humbly called, "all that remains is for us to stop Nate from reaching Temporal Tower in the past and our existence is assured. And I have just the plan to do so."

* * *

Skuntank barely managed to take out a Sitrus Berry as he deflected the flurry of Leaf Blades with Night Slashes. Putting some distance between himself and Grovyle with Flamethrower, he quickly scarfed it down, restoring his energy.

"You just don't know when to quit, do you?"

He glanced at his two teammates knocked out and let out a huff, "I'm done here."

Grovyle blinked, "What?"

"Well I was _going_ to tell you that there's this whole resistance thing right down that tunnel. But _clearly_ you're doing so well by yourself that you don't need it," Skuntank said as he walked over to his teammates and tossed them to carry on his back.

"What?!" the Grass-type shouted. "Why didn't you say that at the beginning?"

"You ever try to explain something like that to someone who attacks the instant they see you?" Team Skull's leader retorted. "Anyway, I'm outta here. I've finished what I was supposed to do, so I'm gonna take my team, find a nice quiet spot to lay low and wait for when I can go back to doing what I want when I want."

Skuntank walked to the wall opposite the corridor and dug a new one large enough for him to walk through.

'Sneaky Umbreon, having us "subdue" someone where our usual way won't work. She made me use _words_ to resolve the fight,' he internally spat.

* * *

The instant that the trio of Poison-types left, Grovyle dashed down the corridor as fast as his injuries would allow.

Before too long, he saw a glow up ahead from around the corner and slowed down to observe carefully. He peeked and saw an Umbreon with their rings alight with Flash. They also had a small bag with a golden P on it and a necklace with a purple gem holding an Explorer Badge. She had been watching the path he came from, so she nodded in greeting and turned around to walk down the underground corridor.

Grovyle caught up and fell into step a few paces away from the Dark-type in case they attacked. Meanwhile, he was confused about a Pokémon on the Hidden Land having a badge since no exploration team had gotten on the Hidden Land before.

"Wait…" Grovyle muttered, narrowing his eyes at the Umbreon, particularly her necklace, before they widened in recognition. "You're that bratty Eevee."

The Moonlight Pokémon gave him an extremely flat look in reply.

The Wood Gecko Pokémon crossed his arms, "Look, I appreciate any help you can offer, but you cannot deny your childish tendencies of… the past." His eyes narrowed again in suspicion, "How are you here?"

"I took the long way," she deadpanned.

Grovyle raised an eyebrow. 'I suppose that makes sense. Theoretically, if a group of explorers got here somehow, all they would have to do is wait.'

"And why wait until now to help?" he asked. "You could've gone back with Nate and I to the past and we could've had the mission done already!"

"It doesn't work like that," Martha countered. "Hold your questions until _after_ we get to the outpost."

Grovyle blinked, "Outpost?"

"What did I just say about holding your questions?" she asked rhetorically. "Look, quite frankly, we don't necessarily _need_ you. I just figured that you would prefer going back to the past instead of dying or sitting around waiting for history to change."

The Grass-type glared, but said nothing. He wanted to go back and continue helping Nate, so he decided to just ignore the other Pokémon. Luckily, she decided the same and they walked in silence.

Soon, Grovyle simply commented, "You've changed."

"Hard not to after five hundred years."

* * *

Martha knew she was acting slightly petty, but she didn't like Grovyle. Ironically, she preferred Dusknoir to him, since she had fostered the ghost's loyalty. She had lied about their lack of need of the Grass-type; the resistance would need all the help they could get to ensure that Nate succeeded. Plus, she knew that Nate would have some sort of survivor's guilt if he found out that Grovyle still died.

But she didn't like that Grovyle likely held a closer spot to Nate's heart than her. Again, a petty reason, but hard to get over now that she knew more about Grovyle and Nate's history. The human-turned-Pokémon had practically raised him, after all.

In the centuries that passed, Martha had become somewhat brutally honest with herself. She would still occasionally sugarcoat things to those that needed it, but didn't do so with herself anymore. As such, several feelings she had subconsciously ignored before became very clear to her.

For example, the reason why she held so much faith in Nate before Brine Cave, despite what he had already done, and even now. She didn't just care about him as a friend; she loved him. And as such, she figured out that she could be very selfish where he was involved. She couldn't even count how many times she wanted to meet him in person and give a fake name so that she could get closer to him.

'But I have to do this,' Martha reminded herself. 'For him.'

It was a shocking truth to find out that she really _didn't_ care about the world at large. The only reason she was in the fight to stop the planet's paralysis was because Nate would never be at peace until it happened.

The Umbreon got shaken out of her thoughts when she saw light up ahead. She doused her light and walked up to see her team gathered around a fire, lit courtesy of Tisha's Flamethrower. They stood up at the sight of her and Grovyle's eyes widened at the number of Pokémon. Several of them were either fully evolved or in their mid-evolution.

"Hn," Tempest grunted. "Welcome, I guess."

Yrja slapped him lightly with one of her flippers and said, "I suppose you have several questions. We'll have to explain on the way."

Tisha went over to a few of their supplies and tossed a green disk to Grovyle. He caught it with ease and looked at it to see that it was a TM for Solar Beam. He looked back up only to see an expectant look, so he held it to his forehead, saying "Thank you."

After everybody started moving to the other side of the tunnel, Psymon formed a sphere of water in his hand and doused the fire with a quick Water Pulse.

"Now…" Grovyle started. "It's my understanding that you all are from the exploration team that Nate formed in the past. How did you get here?"

Ferra tilted her head in reminiscence of a shrug, "We took the same way that Nate did and just waited around. He happened to tip Martha off once that there's no aging when time is broken."

The Wood Gecko Pokémon nodded, glad that his theory was confirmed, "Why wait until now to act? If you had come in earlier, perhaps I could've gone back to the past instead of Celebi."

"If that happened, we would cease to exist, and Celebi'd be on her own anyway," Augustus pointed out.

"Our presence here at this point is very precarious," Regina explained. "The slightest change to events in the past could remove it. Therefore, we decided to err on the side of caution."

"Since Nate's met all of us in the past, if he knew it was us, he'd have a hard time creating the same events that led to our teaming up," Tisha added.

Grovyle cursed under his breath at the unfortunate circumstances while Natalie tapped him on the arm.

He looked at her and she said, "By the way, we should probably tell you that Dusknoir's been helping us too."

His eyes widened, " _What_?"

Terrence put a hand on his shoulder, "Easy there. We found him as a Duskull and brought him into the resistance way back when. He's been feeding us information on both Primal Dialga's actions and Nate's and your growth too."

"I know it's a lot to take in, Grovyle, but Dusknoir's _actually_ on our side," Maribel said.

Grovyle suddenly recalled something and shrugged off Terrence's hand, growling, "And he nearly killed Nate at the stockade, _because_ …?"

"We had to play it by ear for most of these events and hope that it matched up enough for the same important things to happen," Psymon explained. "All we knew about your past with Nate was that Dusknoir was you two's enemy and you evolved at one point. Dusknoir had to play his role just as much as we had to keep out of the events until now."

Chad gripped his leek, "Soon, we'll be taking the fight to Primal Dialga."

"What do you mean?" The Grass-type asked.

Martha nodded, "Very soon, Dusknoir will suggest being sent to the Hidden Land to wait for Nate's arrival, since that is where he'll eventually have to go. One team will go to help Nate in the past…"

"While the other half stays and keeps Primal Dialga from interfering," Augustus finished.

Grovyle put a hand to his head, unable to believe the events. All this time, an entire resistance had been manipulating the events and waiting for the right moment to help. It seemed so unreal.

Then a thought occurred to him. Looking up, he asked, "Why would Nate need help? Celebi is with him, right?"

Team Rapid collectively looked down, while Wattson grumbled, "If he didn't need help, we wouldn't _be_ here, would we?"

Grovyle's eyes widened. 'No…' he thought. 'He can't have… And yet, his exploration teammates…'

Nate had always seemed so indomitable—like he always had a plan to win. And with the power of a Pokémon body added to his wily nature, to Grovyle, Nate could cheat Giratina himself out of his death.

'But… there would be no running away from Temporal Tower,' he concluded. 'And if the Dialga of the past somehow got between him and the altar…' That vein of thought became too grave for him, so he cut it off.

Grovyle looked up, "What are we waiting for, then? Let's hurry and get to Temporal Tower so we can get to the past!"

"A-ha-ha!" Terrence laughed. "That's the spirit, but slow down, bud! We still haven't told you the battle plan."

* * *

 **Finally done! I'm going to be focusing on getting the final chapter of this done, so it'll be out in about a week or so, hopefully.**

 **See you when I see you.**

 **-AJ203**


	6. Holding Out for the Light

**Review Responses:**

 ** _PsychicEevee0103_** **: The mind can do that sometimes, where you expect to see one thing, even though you know it's changed.**

 ** _ProfessorLugia_** **: Thank you for the praise; I try to focus on my characters' development and make it seem natural.**

 ** _Tony Anderson_** **: Look no further, because the conclusion's right here. :)**

 ** _Emblem of Light_** **: I'm glad you think highly of my work.**

 **Now, the finale of The Future of Little Hope.**

* * *

Chapter 6: Holding Out for the Light

As Team Rapid moved through the underground corridor, they told Grovyle about the order they would emerge and how they would group up to fly to Temporal Tower's pinnacle once in the past. He wasn't happy about being one of the last ones through the dimensional hole, but accepted that he and Martha would be most likely able to cut through any Sableye that tried to get in their way. But then a snag in their plan occurred to him.

"Wait," Grovyle suddenly said. "Such a long trip to the past is almost sure to knock us out before arrival. We won't be any good to Nate if-"

Tisha waved a hand, "Oh, we figured that out when Dusknoir gave us his update. He sent a Substitute to us after staging your capture and it told us about that."

"You see, he said that his energy got sapped from the travel through time," Maribel explained. "And it only took us a few seconds to figure out, if getting drained knocks us out, then a Reviver Seed should keep us topped off for our arrival."

Wattson rummaged through the Treasure Bag and passed Reviver Seeds to Martha, Tempest, Maribel, Tisha, Grovyle and Terrence, "Those of you who don't have a strong grip, hold it under your tongues. You don't wanna risk losing it on the way. And don't grip it _too_ tight, or you might crush it before it's used up all its energy."

* * *

Primal Dialga once again readied to make a dimensional hole for his right hand Pokémon to travel back in time with six of his best Sableye. He had to make it at the foot of the stockade so the Sableye staying here could be ready to take Nate prisoner while he was unconscious from the trip. Dusknoir's gift of temporal energy was set to return him to after the last point he traveled from, after all. Whether by a few minutes or days' time, the ghost had to avoid appearing twice in the same instance so as to not cause a temporal paradox.

The former Temporal Pokémon roared and caused a portal to open. He had set it to connect to the Hidden Land a few minutes after Dusknoir had last left the past. More than enough time for his followers to recover.

* * *

Covering their ears at the loud roar, Team Rapid got into formation. Grovyle shook a bit, but steeled himself.

* * *

Dusknoir looked at the dimensional hole in front of him and turned around to face Primal Dialga, looking past his men to him.

"I thank you, Master Dialga for always ensuring our continued existence."

His six Sableye chuckled and Primal Dialga said nothing, only growling for Dusknoir to go into the portal.

The mouth on Dusknoir's stomach opened, revealing a Luminous Orb he'd kept there since he found one in a mystery dungeon in the past. He held it in between the mouth's teeth to the fallen legendary and Sableyes' surprise, "I'm afraid I cannot follow that order."

The Ghost-type crushed the orb and blinded the Sableye and Primal Dialga with the flash of light. Primal Dialga immediately started shifting the portal's emergence point to the future, so it would come out after the planet's paralysis.

But Dusknoir turned around and used his stock of temporal energy to overlap his own portal over the dimensional hole, causing it to fix the point a second after the time Primal Dialga had it at. He could only hope it wasn't too late.

'Now!' he telepathically signaled as he released Foresight to solidify the dazed Sableye while firing a Dark Pulse at Primal Dialga to distract him.

The ground burst behind Dusknoir and Augustus and Natalie came forward to attack the Sableye with Brick Break and Double Kick, respectively.

Primal Dialga regained his bearings after the dark energy hit him and roared in pure rage, sounding the alarm. Dusknoir flew up and hit him with an Ice Punch in response to draw his attention.

Next, Terrence emerged from the hole and folded his wings to run through the dimensional hole. Tempest buzzed right behind him, zipping through the air in a flitting pattern to avoid the arriving Pokemon. The Sableye had long since been knocked out, but Pokémon from within Temporal Tower had begun to descend.

Two Claydol attempted to subdue Natalie while a Golbat went for Augustus. But a brown blur cut into the Psychic Pokémon with Night Slash and a Blizzard from the hole froze them along with the Golbat. Dusknoir took advantage of Primal Dialga's negative reaction to the cold to start charging a Shadow Ball in his stomach's mouth.

Chad looked and saw a Ditto transform into a copy of him, so he engaged it to prevent it from intercepting Maribel and Tisha as they went into the dimensional hole next.

Bronzong and Alakazam came next, but several bee-like drones emerged from the hole to attack them. Regina flew up, and a Crobat attempting to sneak attack her got zapped with Shock Wave. She and Ferra cleared a path, barring any Pokémon getting in the way while Martha and Grovyle came out of the tunnel.

Primal Dialga saw them as he raised some stone with Ancient Power to absorb Dusknoir's Shadow Ball and began readying his Roar of Time. At the furious roar, Grovyle hesitated to look back.

"Don't look back, go!" Martha shouted in frustration around the Reviver Seed in her mouth.

Knowing that the attack had enough power to completely wipe out all of Team Rapid in front of Primal Dialga, Dusknoir did the only thing that he could to preserve the future.

Dissolving into shadows, he reappeared in his former master's direct line of fire.

'I don't know if it can hold up the entire length of the attack, but I have to try!'

Primal Dialga fired the Roar of Time, heedless of his traitorous follower and his other servants also in range. Dusknoir threw up a Protect wall, causing the beam to divert around it in smaller streams, but he struggled to maintain it with his hands held forward. Making it partial instead of the full sphere lessened the strain, but he had to put everything in it to stop the former Temporal Pokémon's ultimate attack.

Grovyle stared for a moment in surprise that Dusknoir did such a selfless act until Wattson shoved him towards the dimensional hole.

"Go already!" he ordered while using Thunderpunch on a Hypno nearby.

Grovyle nodded and dashed after Martha as they both went into the portal.

Psymon came up and noticed their departure before shouting, "Dusknoir! Everybody's through!"

The portal disappeared as the Ghost-type spared a bit of his concentration to cut the connection. From his perspective, he only heard his name being shouted in slow motion, and did so before not paying the rest of the message any mind. He focused on his defense, for he felt as if he had held against Primal Dialga's attack for a whole minute already.

'How did Martha do this herself?!' he wondered incredulously. But he already knew the answer after asking that question. His role demanded that he practice offensive moves more than defensive, whereas Martha had likely trained her Protect to last several minutes in preparation of Grovyle's rescue.

Cracks started spreading across his barrier soon after that revelation. He groaned from the pressure, 'Only one chance… If offense is my specialty, I'll use it!'

Dusknoir formed a Substitute and let it take over maintaining the Protect, which weakened it, but allowed him enough time. Packing all of his remaining energy into the attack, Dusknoir charged up a Hyper Beam in his stomach.

The mouth opened slightly, glowing with the pent-up energy as he shouted, "You shall not keep this world in darkness any longer!"

His clone's barrier shattered right as Dusknoir's stomach opened wide, firing the energy in a wide-spread attack that managed to push the attack back slightly. Gasping with slight relief at being taken out of the distorted time zone, he continued putting everything he had into deflecting the Roar of Time. Right as he felt himself giving out, a large stream of water joined his attack.

He chanced a glance and saw Psymon helping him, most of the Pokémon that had attacked now knocked out. Yrja also joined in with an Ice Beam and Primal Dialga started running out of steam without the advantage of distorting time around his targets.

Soon, the attack sputtered away and the three attacks went forward to hit him. Primal Dialga wasn't overly affected, but had to catch his breath, as did Dusknoir. The ghost supported himself on the ground with his hands, noticing his form flickering from using too much energy.

Psymon immediately surged forward in an Aqua Jet and he span, allowing Yrja to freeze it into an ice Aqua Jet before she turned back to fight the other Pokémon. The ice missile shattered into Primal Dialga's neck, leaving several scratches and the tip embedded inside. Natalie also ran forward and hit the giant Pokémon's leg with Double Kick, forcing him to take a knee.

Augustus popped up from beneath Primal Dialga and hit him in the stomach with Brick Break and Chad flew by, using Slash on the other side of his neck. Meanwhile, Regina, Ferra and Yrja cleaned up the rest of Primal Dialga's servants.

Wattson charged forward and slid on the ground, using Low Kick on the rear leg corresponding to Primal Dialga's already downed one, making him fall to his side.

When Dusknoir got what little energy remained in his body back, he knew he had to act quickly before the legendary Pokémon retaliated. He shadow traveled to Primal Dialga's face and quickly used Spite, black rings of energy emanating from his eye.

Primal Dialga batted him away with Dragon Claw for his trouble.

Dusknoir half-phased into the ground upon impact, before barely managing to pull himself up to a sitting position. He looked and saw his form flickering worse and noticed that the scratch wounds were widening and leaking shadow energy. He looked at his hand and saw it starting to leak trails of shadowy mist.

Chuckling, the Gripper Pokémon muttered, "I suppose that's what happens when I put my all in one attack and then try to keep going…"

He shut his eye in resignation, 'I've done my part. I've shorted out Primal Dialga's Roar of Time. The others should be able to handle him now until history changes.'

Taking comfort in the fact that the new Pokémon would live in peace, Dusknoir was ready to die when something landed in the middle of his essence. He opened his eye in surprise, feeling new energy flow into his body. A Reviver Seed floated in the middle of his half-dissolved body, bringing the mist back together around it.

"You think we'd let you die?" he heard Wattson shout while using Thunder Punch to return an Aura Sphere to Primal Dialga. "You're a teammate too, now get up!"

With great difficulty, Dusknoir concentrated on the healing energy and pulled himself together, reforming a hand to ready a Will-O-Wisp flame. He threw it at Primal Dialga, starting to float again as his other arm was halfway reformed. His ghost tail reformed as well, his torso reassembling from the top and bottom towards the middle. The scratch wounds healed last, and not all the way, leaving three silver scars across the face on his stomach.

Dusknoir held his hands to the side, summoning rings of dark energy before firing a Dark Pulse at Primal Dialga. Wattson used Thunderbolt while Psymon and Natalie both used Ice Beam and Augustus used Energy Ball. The five attacks hit at the same time, detonating in an explosion, and Chad held his leek skyward as wind swirled around it before he swung it back and forth furiously, sending repeated Air Slashes into the smoke cloud.

The blades of wind caused the smoke to part slightly, and the Pokémon saw Primal Dialga breathing hard. Ferra, Yrja and Regina came in as well, ready to strike if he moved. The former Temporal Pokémon glared at all of them, but then a golden ball of light emerged from his foot, causing his head to rear up in shock.

The other Pokémon were surprised as well until Dusknoir laughed joyously, "Martha, Grovyle, and the others! They must have succeeded in helping Nate!"

"GRRRR-OOOOOOOH!"

Primal Dialga made his displeasure known and tried to stand up again. Wattson kicked him in the leg to make him take a knee.

"Give it a rest already!" he complained with a pant. "You're… gonna live on in… the other timeline…" Wattson fell to his knees as well as light started coming from him too.

The fatigue swept over Team Rapid and Dusknoir, each of them starting to lose their strength. Primal Dialga started raising boulders to attack them with, but they fell back to the ground with a crash as the effects of history's change stacked atop his exhaustion from battle, more orbs of light emanating from his body. Yrja and Chad leaned against each other while the rest of Team Rapid just sat down and waited. Each had their own private thoughts.

Yrja and Chad whispered comforts to each other, happy that the world was safe and that they got to spend so much time together, despite the dangers.

Psymon, while put out that he had to evolve, knew that he'd proven his own worth multiple times over and felt proud of helping to save the world.

Regina let out a slight sigh as Primal Dialga disappeared. Despite knowing that her past self would pick up where she left off, she felt regretful that she herself had failed her mission. 'Whatever's left of the queendom must surely be dead by now…' she lamented.

Natalie wished that she had her sister with her, but knew that she'd see her again in another timeline. She wanted more than anything else to send her strength to her other self, so Tisha wouldn't have to constantly worry about her.

Wattson looked at his disappearing teammates and felt a little bad for his counterpart in the past. 'They trust _me_ now, but he'll have to work at it on his own,' he mused. The Electric Pokémon knew from experience that it would be a long time before Team Rapid of the past trusted him, especially without the mission to save the world banding them together.

Ferra was glad that she along with her team had helped Nate fulfill his mission. This team had given her purpose, and what better purpose could one have than saving the world?

Augustus didn't feel much of anything, knowing that any sentiment he felt right now would be reset once the new timeline took over. He could wind up completely different from how he felt now. But one thing he allowed himself to feel was the satisfaction that he'd done something worthwhile after being conned into working with Team Spore.

Dusknoir felt grateful, above all else. Martha had found him and brought him from the darkness to help bring about a future of light. While he knew that he would not continue like his comrades, he still felt at peace while the rest of his body started going up in light.

Yrja and Chad disappeared together, while Psymon followed shortly after. Ferra closed her eyes before dissolving into light. Dusknoir had a serene expression when he vanished. Augustus and Regina remained stoic until the end, knowing that their other selves would carry on. Natalie weakly waved goodbye to Wattson, who lasted the longest. The Electric Pokémon, too, disappeared while looking around at the Pokémon from Temporal Tower that vanished with pity.

The sun rose, painting the skies of the Hidden Land golden once again as the change completed. Temporal Tower even started to reconstruct in glimmers of golden light, becoming whole as it had been in centuries past during the new timeline.

* * *

Darkness… the oppressive darkness muted all of his senses. He had disappeared in Martha's embrace. Nate felt there were worse ways to die. Then again, he didn't feel much of anything.

"…ake up… plea…"

He almost didn't hear the voice, but furrowed his brow in confusion.

"He's… ving…! Everybo… make wa…!"

The light that filled his vision seemed blinding, but he blinked as he saw some familiar shadows at the edge of his vision.

"Nate!"

He felt arms wrap around him and gasped, seeing a familiar shade of green.

"Grovyle…?"

The Wood Gecko Pokémon had swept him up, holding him over his shoulder in a hug. Nate shook his head clear and looked around, seeing his teammates and Celebi gathered around.

"We were afraid you didn't make it," Grovyle explained in a relieved tone.

When Nate registered his current state, his eyes widened and he said, "Wait, how are we still alive?! Is Temporal Tower-"

Terrence pointed, "It's still standing, but we're back now."

A quick glance from the Electric-type confirmed that, but he patted Grovyle's shoulder, "Put me down, Grovyle. We need answers."

His friend did so, and Nate paced around a bit, thinking. He noticed his necklace on the ground and picked it up, putting it back on out of habit while he tried to figure out their situation.

"All right, so we're back, good," he muttered. "But why, and what's different? Who can we go to for an explanation?"

A new voice spoke up, "I believe I may be of service."

Nate and Grovyle instinctively got ready for battle while Celebi grew nervous as they recognized the voice, but Martha and Tisha got in front of them, trying to placate the duo.

"Easy, boys," Tisha calmly said.

Martha looked at Nate, "We never would've gotten back here without his help. _Please_ try to accept him."

Dusknoir arrived with his hands in the air, showing that he meant no harm. One thing that the two of them didn't recognize was that the Ghost-type had three diagonal scars across his torso.

Grovyle hesitantly got out of his stance first, "Sorry. Old habits."

"Forgive my intrusion," Dusknoir apologized. "I came to explain what Dialga of the future told me, as much as he knew of our current situation."

Celebi peeked from behind Grovyle, "Dialga's back to normal in the future?"

"Yes," the ghost nodded, lowering his arms to a more casual position. "He regained his reason, and Temporal Tower stands whole again in the former future of darkness."

Maribel breathed a sigh of relief, "That's some good news."

He turned his eye to Nate, who had stood up from his all fours ready position, but still looked guarded around Dusknoir. "Ahem, nice to meet you candidly for the first time, Nate," he greeted awkwardly. "Sorry for all that I did to keep up the charade. I hope that we can be friends…?"

Nate didn't answer, and Tempest decided to change the subject, "You said you had some news?"

Dusknoir sighed, "Yes. I'll tell you what happened."

* * *

 ** _Dusknoir woke up to a consistent prodding to the side of his face and saw a Sableye looking at him._**

 ** _"_** ** _Wheh-heh, Master Dusknoir…?" he gingerly asked._**

 ** _The Gripper Pokémon floated up, holding his head before glancing around. Light shone on the ground, coloring it brown instead of the former gray pallor. Dusknoir looked down at his hands and clenched them._**

 ** _"_** ** _I'm alive… How am I alive?" he muttered to himself._**

 ** _He wheeled around and saw Temporal Tower whole, as if it had stood tall for hundreds of years. As he thought, the Sableye tapped him on the ghost tail._**

 ** _"_** ** _Master Dialga has asked to see you and your… friends," the Sableye reported._**

 ** _Dusknoir looked and saw the rest of the resistance idling about the entrance of the stockade, "I… see. Thank you, Sableye. Dismissed."_**

 ** _As he left, he heard the Darkness Pokémon laugh happily, as if glad. 'I suppose I did commit to the "oppressive superior" role a little too well…' Dusknoir mused. 'Still, if they see me as their commander still, I'll have to teach them that I won't tolerate bullying other Pokémon.'_**

 ** _Dusknoir met with the others before he shadow traveled them to the Temporal Pinnacle. Dialga stood there, seeming much tamer. No patterns glowed on his skin, and he nodded to indicate that he registered their presence._**

 ** _The Temporal Pokémon looked at the completed tablet. It rested in the altar innocently with its green glow, but he stared at it as if he wanted answers out of it._**

 ** _"_** ** _Master… Dialga?" Dusknoir hesitantly asked._**

 ** _"_** ** _DUSKNOIR… I WISH FOR YOU TO NOT CALL ME MASTER, FOR THAT TITLE EMBODIES THE ACTIONS I TOOK OUT OF INSANITY," Dialga said without turning around._**

 ** _"_** ** _I see…" the ghost replied. "Do you, perhaps… have an explanation for why we remain alive?"_**

 ** _"_** ** _I DO NOT," the legendary Pokémon answered. "I OVERSEE TIME ITSELF, YET I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. BY ALL ACCOUNTS, WE SHOULD'VE BEEN LOST TO TIME—ALL OF US ERASED FROM EXISTENCE. YET HERE WE STAND."_**

 ** _He turned around, "I SENSE INTERVENTION FROM A POWER HIGHER THAN MYSELF, BUT I CANNOT FORESEE WHY." Dialga walked past the resistance, looking out over the Hidden Land. Even though Temporal Tower had been restored, the rest of the Hidden Land remained barren and desolate._**

 ** _"_** ** _HOWEVER, I SEE NO REASON TO LEAVE THE WORLD IN THIS STATE AT THE COST OF OUR EXISTENCE."_**

 ** _Rearing his head back, the Lord of Time let out a roar that released a pulse of white energy bordered by a rainbow. The other Pokémon shielded their eyes from the blinding light. When it receded, they looked again and gasped as they saw the Hidden Land teeming with life, the plants growing again and the earth unscarred._**

 ** _"_** ** _How…?" Natalie asked in wonder._**

 ** _"_** ** _I HAVE REGRESSED THE LAND'S AGE TO RESTORE IT TO ITS FORMER GLORY," Dialga explained. "IT IS AS IF THE CENTURIES OF DARKNESS AND ABUSE NEVER OCURRED TO THE WORLD ITSELF."_**

 ** _Regina looked at him with interest, "And the Pokémon?"_**

 ** _"_** ** _I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO RESTORE LIVES LOST, NOR REMOVE ANY MEMORIES. ANY POKÉMON STILL ALIVE ON THE WORLD BELOW ARE AS THEY WERE," he explained._**

 ** _"_** ** _Wait… but if we're alive…" Psymon mused. "Martha and Nate!"_**

 ** _"_** ** _Right! We oughta send somebody to go get 'em!" Augustus agreed._**

 ** _Ferra turned to the Temporal Pokémon, "Dialga, could you please send one of us back in time to retrieve our friends?"_**

 ** _Dialga regarded them before letting out a breath through his nose, "VERY WELL. I SUPPOSE I OWE YOU A FAVOR FOR HELPING TO STOP THE PLANET'S PARALYSIS. WHO SHALL GO?"_**

 ** _The Pokémon looked around at each other before Wattson said, "Dusknoir."_**

 ** _Dusknoir's eye widened as Chad said, "Wattson, are you sure that's the best idea? What if Nate attacks him?"_**

 ** _"_** ** _Martha had to have at least explained that he's on our side," Yrja defended._**

 ** _Wattson shrugged, "Besides, does anybody else even remember half of what Dialga said? I doubt he wants to repeat himself."_**

* * *

"So, since I had the best recollection of what Dialga of the future said, they selected me to explain what happened," Dusknoir finished.

Grovyle looked down in thought, "A 'higher power'. That doesn't tell us much of anything."

"Well, we're all alive, so I vote we make the most of it," Tempest added. "I'm going back to the future. I have something to tell… someone. Bye!"

Tisha shook her head at Tempest's flimsy cover before saying, "I'm heading back to see Natalie. The rest of you can fly or teleport the others, so see ya." She walked off with her club held over her shoulder.

Celebi giggled and turned to Grovyle, "Shall we head back, my dear Grovyle?" She remembered what Grovyle said to her in the future, before his believed death. The thought of exploring the possibility filled her with giddy joy.

But her smile fell slightly when she saw Grovyle looking at Nate, who seemed hesitant. The Wood Gecko Pokémon replied, "Why don't you go on? I'll catch up."

"I'll wait," Celebi insisted.

Terrence and Maribel looked over, but Martha reassured them, "It'll be fine. Dusknoir or Celebi can teleport us to the dimensional hole."

The two flying Pokémon looked at each other before agreeing that it was a matter for their leaders and the ones that knew Nate well. They flew off, leaving the four to their discussion.

* * *

Nate looked around feeling like everyone around him knew precisely what he was thinking about. He wasn't used to such attention and looked down.

"You're thinking about staying here, aren't you?" Grovyle asked.

The human-turned-Pokémon sighed, "Ordinarily, it wouldn't be a contest, but for some reason I can't just pick up and leave. Leaving the Martha of this time to keep on thinking that I've disappeared just doesn't seem right."

"You would stay for her?" the Wood Gecko Pokémon asked.

Martha seemed concerned, "Even after your falling out with the guild?"

"If she asked, I actually might," Nate answered without looking up. "We've never had a choice, Martha. It's always been about what _had_ to be done. I can't just take off without giving her a chance to have me stay."

Martha instinctually wanted to object. She knew that her past self would never appreciate having Nate with her like she would. The past Martha merely saw him as a very close friend while she herself had come to terms with the true depths of her feelings.

But she also knew that Nate had to do this, in order to reconcile with his past decisions. She understood now what all of his past actions meant—to make sure that she would be taken care of when he left. To leave her like this would weigh on Nate's soul.

'I have the chance to be with Nate, and now this.' She internally sighed, 'Never, in all my life, did I think that I'd be jealous of myself.' But on the outside, she smiled, "I understand, Nate. So long as you're happy, I'm happy."

Grovyle looked at her questioningly, but then added, "Yes, after all you've been through, you deserve the right to choose where you stay."

Nate looked up, "I need to at least see the past Martha to say a proper goodbye, if nothing else. But I need a way to see her without drawing attention to myself."

"How are you going to do that?" Celebi asked.

Dusknoir spoke up, "I believe I may have a solution." The other Pokémon from the future looked at him, and he explained, "Ghosts such as myself do not need sustenance or sleep. I can spy on the past—er, present Martha, and find a moment where she's all alone, then come get you."

"…All right," Nate reluctantly agreed. "But how long do you think it'll take?"

Dusknoir gestured at Temporal Tower beside them, "A few moments for you."

* * *

Dialga regarded the group of five Pokémon before letting a sigh out through his nose, "VERY WELL. I SUPPOSE I OWE YOU A FAVOR FOR HELPING TO STOP THE PLANET'S PARALYSIS. WHO SHALL GO?"

Dusknoir floated forward, "That would be me."

"HM. YOU ALREADY MAINTAIN A PORTAL THROUGH TIME," Dialga noted. "I'LL TAKE OVER KEEPING IT OPEN, IF ONLY SO I DON'T HAVE TO MAKE ANOTHER ONE."

The ghost extended his hand, letting a wisp of temporal energy go to the Lord of Time, giving him control of the dimensional hole he'd used to travel back. Once that was done, Dialga roared and formed a new hole.

"THIS WILL TAKE YOU TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD A FEW SECONDS AFTER THE MOMENT YOU ENTER," he explained. "THE ENERGY I GIFTED YOU WILL OPEN BACK HERE. SO LONG AS YOU TAKE THE OTHER DIMENSIONAL HOLE STRAIGHT BACK TO THE FUTURE UPON RETURN, IT SHOULDN'T CAUSE A PARADOX FROM YOU BEING IN TWO PLACES WITHIN THE SAME TIME PERIOD. THIS LAND EXISTS WITHIN A GAP IN TIME, AFTER ALL."

By the end of his explanation, the entire group besides Celebi was confused. The pink Pokémon nodded, "Makes sense to me."

"I never knew time travel was so… complicated," Grovyle commented while scratching his head.

Nate shrugged, not quite understanding, but speculating, "I guess it didn't matter much since we traveled to before we were born."

"And I traveled here to a gap in time, so it didn't matter that the past Team Rapid existed here as well," Martha said, trying to wrap her mind around it.

Dialga narrowed his eyes, "LET THIS BE A LESSON. WHILE I TRULY APPRECIATE YOUR SAVING THE WORLD, YOU SHOULDN'T RUN ABOUT THROUGH THE TIMELINE. SUCH ACTIVITIES COULD UPSET THE BALANCE OF THE WORLD."

"Right…" Nate nodded. "I don't intend to travel in time anymore after today, one way or another."

Dusknoir moved towards the portal, "Well, I'll see you all in a few moments."

"Wait, shouldn't you take a Reviver Seed?" Nate asked.

"IT IS ONLY A TRIP OF A FEW SECONDS," Dialga dismissed. "IT'LL PASS IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE."

The ghost nodded, "Very well. But thank you for your concern, Nate."

He floated into the portal, and it disappeared. The other four Pokémon milled about, while Dialga simply stood and watched the spot where the portal had been.

Celebi fluttered over, "What are you doing?"

"WAITING UNTIL THE PORTAL REAPPEARS SO THAT I CAN GAUGE HOW FAR FROM THE FUTURE IT IS."

The Time Travel Pokémon nodded, "I see. Is it hard being the Pokémon that oversees time?"

"NOT OVERLY SO," Dialga answered. "I WAS BORN WITH THE POWER AND MENTAL CAPACITY TO FULFILL MY ROLE. THE SAME AS MY BROTHERS HAVE EQUAL MINDS TO TEND TO THEIRS."

The dimensional hole appeared once again, and Nate stepped forward, "Well, I guess it's the moment of truth."

"THIS PORTAL COMES FROM THREE MONTHS IN THE FUTURE. YOU'LL FEEL A LITTLE TIRED, BUT SHOULD BE CONSCIOUS UPON EMERGENCE."

Martha wanted to say something, but stopped. The human-turned-Pokémon nodded to Dialga and walked into the portal. Unlike last time, it stayed open.

"You care for him, don't you," Grovyle stated. Even though he phrased it like a question, he'd said it like a statement.

Martha turned her eyes to him while still facing the portal and answered without hesitation, "More than anything."

"You hurt him and I'll kill you."

"If I hurt him, I'd hand you the TM for X-Scissor."

Celebi giggled, "My dear Grovyle, so protective~"

The portal emitted a warbling sound and Nate emerged from it, he wobbled slightly, but Grovyle supported him before he fell. Dusknoir came soon after and only stumbled in his flight for a moment before righting himself.

Martha blinked in surprise. She had honestly expected only Dusknoir to come back.

Celebi fluttered forward, "What happened?"

"The past Martha said that while she was happy that I came back, that she had promised to grow to be a strong explorer, and that she couldn't depend on me forever," Nate explained. "We said our goodbyes and Dusknoir took me back here."

"So you're coming back to the future with us?" Grovyle asked.

"Yeah," the Pikachu nodded, "let's go."

"FAREWELL, TIME TRAVELERS," Dialga said. "MAY YOU LIVE IN PEACE WITHIN YOUR NEW FUTURE."

Dusknoir waved everyone towards him and shadow traveled them for a quick stop at the Kangaskhan Rock. Nate opened his personal storage and emptied the items he'd collected into Team Rapid's stores. With that done, the ghost took them back to the Old Ruins, where the dimensional hole back to the far future still warbled. He then opened his mouth and took out a bag from inside his stomach that had Reviver Seeds in it.

"Shall we?" he asked, holding them out for everybody.

Everyone nodded while taking them and Dusknoir took the lead, followed by Grovyle and Celebi. Martha started going forward as well, but looked back when Nate didn't move.

"Nate? Is something wrong?" she asked.

"Sort of." Nate shrugged, "To tell the truth, I don't really know where to go from here. My plans only went as far as stopping the planet's paralysis. Having dedicated all four centuries of my life to the cause, what next? I was fully expecting to die."

Martha looked at him seriously, "Do you regret being brought back?"

"Of course not. Life is precious," the human-turned-Pokémon replied without any doubt. "All I'm saying is that I've never done anything else. Even though I tried to give a carefree childhood to Grovyle, I didn't really have one myself. I'm not sure if I'm made for peacetime."

Martha knew her answer already. "Well, whatever happens, I'll be there for you. Every step of the way. We're… a team, right?" She cursed her slight hesitance, but she couldn't help her own doubt.

'Nate had been about to reply to my confession, but we disappeared before he could finish,' she thought while keeping a calm exterior. 'But he could've just been saying yes to make me feel better before the end.'

Nate looked at her, and turned back to the portal, "Martha, I'm not going to mince words. I care for you, but I'm not sure about my own feelings. One: I never had time for love before, two: I thought I was going to die at the end, so I wouldn't want to leave anybody behind, and three: there's the whole thing about me being a human before I first met you."

Martha didn't say anything during any of the points, keeping a straight face and holding out in case he had anything else to say.

"So, I ask that you give me some time to sort my feelings out," he finished.

She nodded while internally relieved that she had a chance, "I've already waited five hundred years, Nate. I can wait a little longer."

"Thank you. Now let's go home," he said as they both held their Reviver Seeds in their mouths.

The two of them walked into the portal, traveling forward to the future.

* * *

 **And that's the end of The Future of Little Hope! Glad to have this done, as it means that I can start devoting time to Her Story. I plan to have the first chapter out before July's end, so look forward to it.**

 **See you when I see you.**

 **-AeroJester203**


	7. Sequel Note

**Hey, just a bit of news for those who follow this story, but not my profile: Her Story is out.**


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